For years, women and men have been wearing earrings, and nowadays earrings come in all shapes and sizes. But sometimes those dangles can lead to more than you bargained for. Split earlobes is an unfortunate but common occurrence that leads to disfigurement and in some cases, self consciousness and disappointment. The good news is there are ways to handle such problems, and there are now easy and straightforward ways to fix split earlobes.
“Essentially, there are two main methods that are used to repair split earlobes,” explains Dr. Adam Mamelak, dermatologic surgeon at Sanova Dermatology in Ausitn, Texas. The first method involves a minor surgery. It is not necessary to be but to sleeps for this procedure and it most cases it can be performed in office. Here, a patient receives a local anesthetic in the affected ear. Once the area is anesthetized, your skin surgeon will “clean up” the skin around the split. “Then the two, clean, uniform edges of skin are stitched together in a fine line, and allowed to heal,” Dr. Mamelak. Recovery times vary but in general, stitches are in place for 1-2 weeks after the procedure. As with any procedure, post-surgical scarring can occur, but with the right surgical and reconstructive technique, this is minimized. However, in general, the patient must refrain from re-piercing his or her ears and wearing earrings for a number of months, and in some cases, a full year.
“The non-surgical method of repairing split earlobes can be just as effective,” says Dr. Miriam Hanson, cosmetic expert at Sanova. “Basically, this procedure involves using dermal fillers, such as Juvederm, Restylane or Radiesse to minimize the split’s appearance, expand the earlobe ‘volume’ and repair the damage associated with stretching.” The fillers are typically injected into the earlobe while the patient is relaxed and in an office setting. Recovery time is very short and most patients are able to resume wearing earrings in days.
Depending on the amount of damage to the earlobe, some patients may opt to have both the surgery and the dermal filler injections. “When used in combination, they tend to rejuvenate the earlobe’s appearance and give it added strength,” says Dr. Hanson. We should also mention that both methods may be used to address accident related ear trauma and age related concerns as well.
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Whether its damage from studs, hoops, gauges, dangles or cuffs, to learn more about the various earlobe rejuvenation and repair methods and whether or not they are right for you, please contact us at Sanova Dermatology today.
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