Cleft Earlobe/Earlobe Lift Gallery

A woman in her late 40’s who has a partial cleft of her left earlobe which makes it difficult to wear earrings and also is bothered by drooping of both her ear lobes when she has earrings in place. After discussing options she elected for a bilateral ear lobe lift. With this procedure a wedge is marked by swinging the earlobe back and forth across an imaginary point. She is shown again, 3 months after her surgery and just before re-piercing her earlobes in the office.

An RN in her late 60’s who has had a torn right earlobe repaired several years ago in Boston. . She was not removing her earrings at night and it split again, within a year. She decided to have it repaired again, and came to see us 3 months ago. The right earlobe had already had some lobe excised and did not need a wedge/lift at the time of our repair, but the left earlobe had a wedge/earlobe lift to better match. She is back today for re-piercing and loves her new earlobes. After re-piercing she will cleanse the ears with hydrogen peroxide daily for 3-4 weeks and then get in the habit of removing her earrings when sleeping. I believe that the earring post pushes back and forth against the pillow when sleeping and cuts through the earlobe, like a wire cutting through cheese. So repair is good, prevention is better!

A woman in her early 40’s whose left earlobe had been split for several years. She thinks that it was pierced too low originally. She is shown before and again, 3 months after repair in the office under local anesthesia, and just before having her ear re-pierced.

A woman in her late 20’s with a cloft of her left ear for the last 2 years. She is shown before and again, 3 months after repair in the office, when she returned for re-piercing.

A woman in her late 50’s with stretching of her ear piercings who is desiring of correction. She is shown before and again, 3 months after repair when she returns for re-piercing. We think her problem came from sleeping with her earrings in, so she start to remove them when sleeping, after the new piercings have healed.

A 21 yo with a cleft earlobe who is seen before and again, 1 ½ years after repair. She was delayed in coming back for re-piercing because she was out of the country.

Scars typically will become thicker and redder for 6 weeks and then start to soften and fade for the next 2 years. Most patients in the web gallery are seen at the 3 -month mark, the time when they typically return for re-piercing. With the benefit of a longer time period , her earlobe repair scar has faded to the point where it is difficult to see.

A woman in her mid 70’s with a cleft of her earlobe as well as age related laxity. She is shown before an again, 3 months after an earlobe lift. A wedge is marked by swinging the earlobe back and forth over an imaginary point to precisely mark the amount of extra ear lobe. This lifts the earlobe and restores a more youthful appearance.

An RN in her late 50’s with a partial cleft of her left earlobe. Her earrings “hang funny” now and fall out. She is shone before and again, 3 months after an earlobe lift/ repair. In the ear lobe lift, a wedge of ear lobe is precisely measured and removed to elevate the droopy ear lobe at the time of repair.

A woman in her late 30’s with a partial cleft of her left ear lobe. Her earrings now hang funny and start to fall out. She is shown before and again, 3 months after repair.
Discussion: She attributes the partial tear to the use of her cell phone on this side. Scars are typically at the reddest and thickest at 6 weeks and then continue to fade for the next 2 years. We will re=pierce the ears at the 3 month mark in the office, and recommend that our patients cleanse the area with hydrogen peroxide 2-3x day for the following 3-4 weeks and then start to remove the earring(s) when sleeping to prevent re-tearing of the earlobe from the friction of the earring against the pillow.

An early ( 6 week) follow-up on a man in his mid to late 30’s with gauges in his ears. He does not like the look of gauges any longer and wanted to have these corrected. The scars are typically at their reddest at 6 weeks and will now fade and improve over the next 2 years. He is thrilled with the appearance, and happy to have “normal” ears again.

Update: Our patient is now seen nearly 6 months after his gauges repair. The scars have continued to fade, and the earlobes have a normal shape.