Microtia Surgery: What Are The Complications?

Microtia is a deformity that many children must live with as they grow up

. One or both ears are very small in appearance, which can cause the child to feel self conscious and suffer low self esteem. The deformity causes practical issues too, making it difficult for some kids to wear classes or listen to audio through headphones.

Microtia Complications

There are additionally some more serious complications associated with conditions like microtia. Aural atresia, for example, exists when an individual is born without an opening for the canal, which causes hearing difficulties. This may result in the need for a hearing aid to be worn in order to facilitate normal speech development.

Treatments for such Deformities

Doctors skilled in the area of reconstructive surgery now use skin grafts and cartilage or bone from other parts of the body to effectively build a natural-looking, correctly-sized ear for both children and adults living with microtia. Doctors usually prefer to wait until a child reaches at least age 6 before performing the surgery, as this is typically when most patient's ears have reached mature growth.

If the patient is suffering from atresia brought on by such a deformity, the surgeon will attempt to create an opening to the canal during the reconstruction in order to facilitate proper hearing. This may be left until after the external area has been constructed.

Such reconstruction is a complicated surgery that takes careful planning and may require several surgeries before a final result is achieved. You should discuss the anticipated surgical progression with your doctor in order to have a realistic idea of what the end result will be and how long it will take to achieve. If financial factors are an area of concern for your family, seek a surgical practice that offers financing options, or speak with your health insurance company as the surgery may be covered under your policy.

Non-Reconstructive Options

Although the rib cartilage method is considered by most surgeons to be the optimal and most natural-looking solution to this condition, there are other options available including prosthetic ones that can be glued or snapped on. Artificial implants also exist, but they come with the risk of infection and bodily rejection of the artificial part. The rib method uses the patient's own skin and rib cartilage for construction, so there is very little risk of infection and of the body rejecting the reconstructed part.

by: Abigail Aaronson

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