Earlobes in females are almost always adorned with either ear rings or stud wear for much of their life. Since the earlobe is the part of the ear that has no cartilage, any weight on the earlobe  must be borne by the skin and the little bit of fat that lies between the front and back skin edges. This relatively flimsy bit of earlobe tissue is not too resistant to the prolonged wearing of heavy earrings or an inadvertent tug on a tangling earring. As a result, completely split earlobes or an elongated earlobe hole are very common ear problems that present in my Indianapolis plastic surgery practice. Most of what are seen are longstanding earlobe deformities that have gotten progressively worse.

The split earlobe repair is a simple office procedure that is done under local anesthesia. It is a complete excision and vertical closure of either a partial or complete earlobe tear. There is no downtime and one can resume normal activities immediately. The conventional wisdom is that that once the earlobe is repaired, it can be re-pierced again six to eight weeks later. I have used this approach throughout my entire practice and have yet to have a patient who has come back with a failure of the repair. Some plastic surgeons feel, however, that the earlobe cannot tolerate earring wear again because it will be forever be weak and recommend more complicated types of earlobe procedures. I find these rarely necessary.

One concern that some earlobe repair patients have is the time period until they can wear their earrings again. The split earlobe repair can be done so that the wearing of a stud earring can be done immediately. As part of the upper portion of the vertical earlobe closure, a small skin flap is raised from the inside of the split and rolled upward and closed. This recreates the bottom portion of the earlobe hole with fully lined skin. The remainder of the earlobe split is closed vertically as normal. The ear stud is put in at the end of the procedure. It can be taken in and out after surgery as desired.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana

Torn or split earlobes are a very common female ear problem. (and increasingly so in men also) Almos always the cause is ear rings. Whether the weight of them with time causes a near split or having someone pull on one resulting in a laceration, a bifurcated earlobe is often the result. Many people walk around with this problem fearing that a corrective procedure is painful, expensive, or both.

In reality, an earlobe repair is quite simple and relatively inexpensive. In my Indianapolis plastic surgery practice, I perform it as an office procedure under local anesthesia. The split edges are freshened up and a linear (or staggered for some) line of closure is done. Sutures are placed on both the front and backside of the earlobe. There are no other dressings. One can perform any activity after and freely get it wet in the shower or pool the next day. There may be some mild swelling of the earlobe and the fine sutures are slightly visible. Sutures are removed in 7 to 10 days whenever it is convenient for the patient. The critical question (which is always asked) of re-piercing the ears can be done again 6 weeks after the repair.

Repair of torn earlobes is a simple, uncomplicated and very effective procedure. A fine line scar will be left from the new/old hole down to the rim of the earlobe but this will be obscured by new earrings. At the cost of a few hundred dollars per ear, a reconstructed and functional earlobe can be recreated.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana

The wearing of ear jewelry has been done for thousands of years to enhance one’s appearance. Rings, posts, and other objects have been used for ear ornaments and they are as popular today as they have ever been in history. While various parts of the ear are pierced, the earlobe is the most universal site. Unfortunately the earlobe has no structural support because it contains no cartilage unlike the rest of the ear. As a result, the weight of large ear rings or trauma can pull them through the earlobe, leaving a tear or notch in the otherwise smooth continuous edge of the earlobe. The split earlobe not only causes an obvious cosmetic deformity which is hard to cover but also makes it difficult to continue to wear any ear jewelry.

Repair of the split earlobe is a common procedure that is easily done in the office at a low cost. In some cases, the ear lobe hole is merely enlarged (and almost torn through) but most cases have a complete tear creating an inverted V look. Depending on the earlobe problem, reconstruction can take different forms. In every method used, however, the skin lining the hole or tear is removed creating fresh new skin edges from to rebuild.

There are numerous minor variations to earlobe repairs, all with the intent of leaving the earlobe with a smooth and non-notched outer skin border. Whether it be a straight-line closure, z-plasty, rim w-plasty, or jelly-roll technique, they all can work successfully if done well. Over the years, I have found that the straight-line closure will work in most cases. The fear of a notched earlobe rim has not been borne out in my experience. The key is to do a complete resection of all skin edges of the tear so that a tension-free closure can be done.

After an earlobe repair, there are some small sutures that I will need to remove in a week. There are no dressings or special care that needs to be done after. One can shower and get the ear wet as normal. There is virtually no pain after and only a very mild amount of swelling.

Repair of the torn or split earlobe is a simple plastic surgery procedure that works well. One should not avoid having it done for fear that it is a big involved ordeal….for it is not.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana