OUR TWO YEARS EXPERİENCE AND RESULTS OF OTOPLASTY
GATA Haydarpaşa Eğitim Hastanesi, Kulak Burun Boğaz Anabilim Dalı, İstanbul, Türkiye Objective: A great number of surgical techniques have been described to improve the cosmetic outcome and reduce the complication rates of prominent ear. Our aim is to share our experience and results of our otoplasty technique, in which the anterior cartilage is scored using a rasp and supported with mattress sutures fixation.Methods: Otoplasty was performed on thirty-two ears of 16 male patients with ages over 18 years except one 8 year-old-boy. All operations were performed under local anesthesia as only the child was operated under general anesthesia. In all cases, a sand-watch shaped postauricular skin was excised followed by a 0.5 cm cartilage incision in order to reach the anterior side. The cartilage was scored superficially using a rasp in subperichondrial plane to make it more flexible. The cartilage was shaped to form the antihelix and mattress sutures were used to fix the cartilage. Tight dressing was applied after skin suturisation.
Results: As post-operative complications (%9,3), hematoma in one ear, suture extrusion from the skin in one ear and asymmetry between two ears of a patient were seen. Hematoma was treated by needle aspiration as asymmetric ear and suture deformities were reoperated. Rest of the patients was satisfied with results. No anterior skin necrosis, infection and visible irregularity of the anterior surface of the cartilage was noted.
Conclusion: Otoplasty is a very satisfactory operation for both the patient and the doctor. As the aim of the operation is to produce symmetric ears with smooth contour, for this reason combined techniques must be used instead of an only technique. We used a rasp in otoplasty to make cartilage thin and to provide scoring, and our results were satisfactory.
Keywords : Otoplasty, prominent ear, antihelix