Promient Ear Set Back

Prominent Ear Set Back (also called ear pinning, ear correction surgery, otoplasty, pinnaplasty)

This procedure used to be offered very commonly on the NHS but is now very rarely offered even to children. I still perform ear reconstruction on NHS patients, but purely cosmetic procedures are now very rare.

For those who have ears that are too big or stick right out, setting them back, correcting / pinning / reshaping them and/or reducing the size can make a dramatic improvement to the appearance. For those who are self-conscious about their ears it can be a completely confidence changing procedure. Some patients who come to see me have spent years with long hair carefully draped over the ears to hide them and are fearful of going outside in the wind, swimming or participating in sport.

The procedure in adults can be performed under local anaesthetic with no need to visit a hospital or have a general anaesthetic. I perform this as an out-patient procedure in my own local anaesthetic operating theatre. Setting the ears back is all done through incisions at the back of the ear, re-sculpting the cartilage and setting the entire ear angle back the right number of degrees towards the head.

Ear reduction surgery can also be done under local anaesthetic surgery but may involve a scar at the front of the ear hidden in one of the natural curves. This can reduce the height but also the width of the ear.

A head bandage will need to be worn for one week to help keep the ears in place while the incisions heal. After that people return to their normal lives but will need to avoid significant exercise and contact sports for longer