Question:
I wonder if after certain number of years after otoplasty do the ears go back to their original position or they stretch a little bit trying to go back to their original position? Its been a year since i had mine done and I’m worried if i don’t wear a head band every night or if i don’t wear a band while I’m carrying heavy objects they stretch a little because I feel it when I do these maneuvers. Also when I’m very anxious I feel them stretch. I had this procedure twice, 1st in 2013 then in 2015.

Dr A’s Answer:
Otoplasty Maintenance down the road . . . None needed. Once you are a year from your surgery you should expect that your ears will stay that way without any further care needed. The sutures placed in the cartilage are permanent sutures, but in fact aren’t even needed anymore after 6 or 12 months. The cartilage eventually takes on the new shape and won’t spring back even if the sutures were gone. If the sutures aren’t positioned well enough to hold the ear in place all by themselves, the head band won’t make it right. A head band does not prevent the ears from coming back out. In the first months, the sutures are either doing the job all by themselves, or the surgery will be a failure. I only have patients wear a head-band early in the recovery to protect their ears when engaged in activities that might catch or pull on the ear. Certainly a good yank on the ear will cause terrible damage in the early months of healing, but after sufficient time even that shouldn’t undo the result . . . within reason of course.