Ear piercing and ear gauging (where a solid or hollow plug is placed through stretched earlobes) has long been a staple in the world of fashion, enabling women as well as men to express their individuality and uniqueness through their choice of earrings.
But unfortunately, when most people choose the shape and size of their ear jewelry, they rarely consider that the earlobe on which the jewelry will hang is merely soft skin and a small amount of fragile fatty tissue.
Not too Enchanting
Oversized or heavy jewelry, a gentle tug by a child, or even a simple snag on an item of clothing can quickly damage these delicate tissues. This can make the earlobe appear unappealing and unsuitable for wearing jewelry.
A skilled and experienced surgeon can repair a torn, stretched, or gauged earlobe in a relatively simple plastic surgery procedure to restore the lobe to its natural appearance and even enabling the patient to wear suitably sized earrings.
Modern Body Contouring & Laser Center, led by board certified plastic surgeons Dr. Burton M. Sundin and Dr. Reps B. Sundin, provides ear lobe reduction and repair to patients in Northern Virginia, Washington DC, Vienna, McLean, Loudoun, Ashburn, Tysons Corner, Reston, Arlington, Chevy Chase, Richmond, Fredericksburg, and surrounding locations.
Torn, Split, or Elongated Earlobes
It is a relatively simple plastic surgery procedure to repair a torn, split, or elongated earlobe, and it can be safely performed at the MBody office using only a local anesthetic and/or topical numbing agent.
After the earlobe becomes numb, the surgeon cautiously removes any scar tissue that may have developed around the tear edges, and then bring the torn edges of the skin and tissue together using very fine stitches.
If the lobe is missing large amounts of tissue and is likely to fold over, the surgeon may recommend an injectable soft tissue filler to add fullness to the earlobe.
The patient will need to apply antibiotic ointment to the repaired site for several days after the procedure to avoid infection and enhance healing. While the repaired ear lobe can be re-pierced eight weeks after the repair procedure, the patient should avoid wearing heavy earrings.
Gauged Ears
For teens and people in their 20s, ear gauging is a sought-after trend that involves piercing the delicate earlobe tissues with the objective of stretching the lobes until they can accommodate a plug of increasing size.
But after a while, some people may no longer feel happy about the appearance of gauged years as they grow older, or they may experience that the appearance of gauged ears can impede their ability to become a part of the professional workforce.
In such cases, the surgical repair of the lobe is often necessary to restore the original appearance of the earlobe. Repairing a gauged earlobe may be similar in theory to repair a torn earlobe, but in practice it is more challenging. It is more so if the gauge was larger than half an inch which may cause some noticeable scarring on the repaired lobe.
Plastic surgeons at MBody receive patients from Northern Virginia, Washington DC, Vienna, McLean, Loudoun, Ashburn, Tysons Corner, Reston, Arlington, Chevy Chase, Richmond, Fredericksburg, and nearby areas for ear lobe reduction and repair. For more information on the surgical and non-surgical procedures and treatments by Board Certified Cosmetic Plastic Surgeons Dr. Reps Sundin and Dr. Burton Sundin please visit
Serving Northern Virginia, Washington DC, Vienna, McLean, Fairfax, Loudoun County, Ashburn, Tysons Corner, Reston, Arlington, Fredricksburg, Chevy Chase, Potomac, Maryland Richmond, VA and surrounding communities.
