How Prominent Ears Affect Child Psychology

Prominent ears can be a source of concern even in adults today. This is especially true for children with prominent ears once they start school and their social interactions increase, which can negatively affect their psychology. In this article, we'll try to answer questions such as ‘Is having prominent ears a medical condition?’, ‘How can prominent ears be corrected?’, and ‘How do prominent ears affect a child's psychology?’ We hope you enjoy reading.

Is Having Prominent Ears a Medical Condition?

What is commonly called ‘prominent ears’ is an appearance that results from the angle between the head and the ear being wider than normal. Many people ask whether prominent ears are a medical condition. It's worth noting that this is purely an aesthetic appearance and is not a medical condition in any way. However, the appearance of prominent ears can negatively affect a person's psychology, particularly in children, even though it can affect adults too. Throughout this article, we'll share information about prominent ears and psychology.

How Prominent Ears Affect Child Psychology at School

In most societies around the world, the appearance commonly referred to as prominent ears is not considered aesthetically pleasing. As a result, children with prominent ears can experience difficulties, especially at school age when their social interactions increase. Other children may tease children with prominent ears, even without meaning any harm, simply to have fun. This can negatively affect children, who are psychologically vulnerable. This kind of treatment from other children can affect a child's psychosocial health and may even contribute to conditions such as antisocial personality disorder. It can affect the child's socialization process, personality development, concentration at school, and academic performance. For this reason, it's beneficial to address the issue before it becomes a problem, especially for children.

When Should Prominent Ear Surgery Be Performed?

Ear development in humans is complete by around age 6. Since children start school around this age, prominent ear surgery should be performed as early as possible. The earlier prominent ear surgery is performed, the more psychological trauma related to prominent ears can be prevented during the child's growth. If your child has prominent ears but you, as a parent, aren't considering surgery, the issue may continue. Children who have prominent ears but don't have surgery in childhood are often negatively affected psychologically over time and later look for ways to address the issue during adolescence. This is because children become much more attentive to their physical appearance once they enter adolescence.

How Is Prominent Ear Surgery Performed?

Among the topics that parents considering prominent ear surgery for their child are most curious about are the methods used in prominent ear surgery. In this section, we'll provide a general overview of how prominent ear surgery works and how the procedure typically proceeds.

For every prominent ear surgery, a surgical method is chosen based on the individual ear structure. This decision is made by the plastic surgeon you choose for the surgery. Once the surgical method has been determined, the steps followed for the procedure are generally as follows:

• The cartilage of the outer ear is scored to reshape it in the opposite direction.

• The necessary part of the ear cartilage is stitched to the head to narrow the wide angle causing the aesthetic irregularity.

• In the next stage, any excess skin behind the ear is removed.

• Finally, a temporary splint is placed to preserve the new aesthetic shape. This splint stays in place for about 3 days to allow the ear's new shape to settle.

• After these 3 days, the splint and the stitches behind the ear are removed.

As you might expect, temporary swelling occurs at the surgical site after prominent ear surgery. Within about two weeks after the surgery, this swelling resolves and the ear begins to take on its normal appearance. As a result, your child begins to feel more confident and socially secure, helping to prevent the psychological trauma that prominent ears can otherwise cause.

Prominent ear surgery — you can find more details you're curious about via the link above. You can also contact Dr. Suleyman Tas Clinic for personalized information about prominent ear surgery before, during, and after the procedure.

For a complete overview of the procedure, techniques and recovery, read our guide to otoplasty (ear pinning) in Istanbul by Prof. Dr. Suleyman Tas, with before and after photos.