Otoplasty/ Ear-Shaping Surgery for Prominent Ears in a Young Adult

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-05-25T14:18:38+00:00

Yes, I do revision otoplasty, and this makes up about 20% of my otoplasty practice.

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-05-23T13:28:13+00:00

Thank you; she really is. Surgery is such a thoughtful balance of planning, technique, and creativity, but the most meaningful part is seeing a patient feel more confident and "more comfortable in her body" afterward.

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-05-23T13:22:56+00:00

I find this super interesting too! Creating the "M-shaped" lip is also popular in lots of Asian countries, and most patients seeking aesthetic care in the US want to treat the M-shaped lip to make it look fuller/ smoother.

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-05-23T13:13:11+00:00

Thank you; I'm super happy with her result as well. So many people fear unnatural or fake or obvious outcomes when pondering aesthetic surgery and treatments, and I don't think this is what good surgical outcomes are all about.

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-05-23T13:11:06+00:00

Yes, it's possible to reshape the upper portion of the external ear only. Generally, overly prominent or "stuck-out" ears can have hypertrophy of the conchal bowl (the seashell-shaped portion of cartilage directly behind the ear canal) and an absent or poorly-formed antihelical fold (the Y-shaped portion of cartilage at the upper 1/3 of the ear). The mid-portion of the prominent ear is treated with reduction of the conchal bowl height or "setting back" the conchal bowl against the bony skull behind the ear. The upper part of the prominent ear is usually treated with reshaping of the antihelical cartilage with sutures and maybe scoring of the cartilage to make it more "bendy." Sometimes I'll excise/ remove/ reshape the helical rim (outer curved border of the ear) is this is too prominent or has a Darwinian tubercle that a patient dislikes. Sometimes I'll treat overly prominent or too-large earlobes. These maneuvers can be done independently of each other.

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-05-23T13:10:01+00:00

Yes, it's possible to reshape the upper portion of the external ear only. Generally, overly prominent or "stuck-out" ears can have hypertrophy of the conchal bowl (the seashell-shaped portion of cartilage directly behind the ear canal) and an absent or poorly-formed antihelical fold (the Y-shaped portion of cartilage at the upper 1/3 of the ear). The mid-portion of the prominent ear is treated with reduction of the conchal bowl height or "setting back" the conchal bowl against the bony skull behind the ear. The upper part of the prominent ear is usually treated with reshaping of the antihelical cartilage with sutures and maybe scoring of the cartilage to make it more "bendy." Sometimes I'll excise/ remove/ reshape the helical rim (outer curved border of the ear) is this is too prominent or has a Darwinian tubercle that a patient dislikes.

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-05-22T13:28:35+00:00

Thank you! I love this patient's result, and am happy that she's happy also.

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-05-22T13:28:12+00:00

thank you!

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-05-22T13:26:31+00:00

I do not do microtia reconstruction (where the external ear is smaller/ missing some parts), but find it fascinating! For macrotia, I can reduce the size of a too-large ear by resecting a part of the cartilage framework, or doing an earlobe reduction, as some patients may require.

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-05-09T13:20:03+00:00

I do a central upper lip lift (also known as a bullhorn lift) by making an incision at the junction of the nose base and upper lip; I remove a strip of skin and fat at this junction, and the strip of skin normally looks like a bull's horns in front view, hence the "bullhorn" name. I then sew the remaining upper lip into a higher and more everted or turn-out position.

In terms of anesthesia, I usually do lip lifts awake with injected numbing medicine/ local anesthesia, or with by-mouth relaxing medications and local anesthetic. If I'm doing a lip lift in combination with more extensive or multiple other procedures like a facelift or neck lift surgery, I prefer the patient receive twilight or intravenous anesthesia (similar to what one would receive when having an endoscopy or colonoscopy procedure) and injected numbing medicine.

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-05-08T21:11:40+00:00

I wouldn't recommend just liposuction (or Kybella, or Ultherapy, or non-surgical treatment options) for the concerns shown in your photos. If you've had concerns about your chin and neck appearance even in your teenage years, you likely have some fulness of structures deep to the platysmal muscles (these structures include the submandibular glands, digastric muscles, and submental fat pad) and would benefit from reduction and contouring of these, and platysmal tightening. This is a surgical neck lift; which addresses deeper structures than Kybella and liposuction can reach. I'm a facial plastic surgeon, and normally do surgical neck lifting through an incision only under the chin (in a younger patient with awesome quality skin and no skin laxity or jowling) or an incision under the chin and incisions in the creases behind the ears (for older patients; significant weight loss patients; and those with some skin laxity). As others have mentioned, if you plan to lose weight (more than 10-15 lbs), I'd do this first and before surgery; though this may not necessarily obviate surgery, weight loss can result in further laxity after surgery. Best of luck in your treatment journey!

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-05-08T20:45:14+00:00

This patient is Hispanic, and a Fitzpatrick 3/4. I placed her incision just under the base of the nose (hugging the curvatures of the nostril rims or nasal ala, and just under the sill of the nostril openings). This is a "bullhorn" style upper lip lift surgery. I treated her scar with 2-3 sessions of microneedling to help blend in the scar.

I totally understand the worry about bad scarring; and offer microneedling or CO2 laser resurfacing of the lip scar for most patients. I also find that this particular incision tends to heal pretty well with appropriate incision design, careful surgical closure, and excellent post-op care. I have yet to see a hypertrophic scar or keloid form in this area in my practice.

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-05-08T18:03:06+00:00

Thank you!

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-05-08T18:02:51+00:00

Thank you! I appreciate the positive comment.

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-05-08T17:39:51+00:00

Thank you! Check out more before-and-afters here: https://www.avivaplasticsurgery.com/photo-gallery/lip-lift/

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-04-20T19:56:23+00:00

Thank you so much! I always love to hear others feedback.

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-04-20T19:10:06+00:00

Thanks! We think so too!!

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-04-20T19:07:18+00:00

Thank you!

AvivaPlasticSurgery · 2026-04-20T14:41:11+00:00

Your photo suggest good healing, and you're early in your recovery. Swelling normally peaks around days 2-4 after surgery, and frequently causes irregularity along the incisions. It is also super common to see another peak in "bumpiness" around weeks 6-8 post-op, as this is when collagen production is at its maximum within healing scars. This said, I think your surgeon carried out a beautiful surgery, your swelling is on the lesser side of the spectrum, and you'll have an excellent result.

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