In comparison to men, women tend to have smaller ears. By the time we reach about 10, our ears are almost fully grown. On the odd occasion, some teenagers’ ears can seem to be a bit larger than life – but this is merely because we grow into our ears as we age.

After our teenage years, our ears remain pretty much the same size until the age of around 60, when they enlarge gradually – specifically the lobes and the lower part of the ear. This is even more prominent in men – as you will notice the next time you have a good hard look at an elderly man.

Some people become very conscious of the shape or size of their ears, due to ear deformities, genetic conditions or the effects of wearing heavy jewellery over time. People who are unhappy with their ears can become very self-conscious and go to lengths to hide them or avoid situations such as swimming or windy weather where they stand the risk of their ears being exposed. In cases like these, otoplasty is an ideal option to help them regain confidence as this procedure involves the resetting or reshaping of the ear.

What is Otoplasty?

Also known as ear reshaping or pinnaplasty, otoplasty is a form of surgery that entails correcting the shape, size or position of one’s ear. People who opt for this type of cosmetic procedure do so for various reasons – ranging from personal aesthetic reasons to the need for repair after accidents or injury.

The size and shape of one’s ears contributes to overall facial harmony. The “ideal ear” is said to be neat and small and be situated a long way from the mouth, with the top of the ear level with the eyebrow and the bottom level with the base of the nose. Any form or pinnaplasty aims to give a patient more self-esteem by correcting their ears and adding to this overall facial harmony.

How Does Otoplasty Work?

An ear reshaping surgery takes between 45 minutes to an hour (per ear), patients can choose between a local, twilight or general anaesthetic – this choice is also dependent on the difficulty level of the pinnaplasty. In the case of ears being pinned back, patients will be glad to know that they can opt for a local anaesthetic, which allows them to be able to sit up prior to the stitches being tied, so that they can immediately see the results.

After an otoplasty, it is recommended that patients wear a head bandage for 7 days to protect their ears while they heal. This head bandage also serves to prevent the ears from moving forward while you move around on your pillow at night. In the case of people who can’t wear a head bandage, there is also the option to wear a head band which also protects the ears for the duration of healing time.

Who Can Benefit From Ear Reshaping?

In some cases, ear size is determined by genetics and in other cases, people find that one ear is bigger than the other and they tend to appear lopsided. This growth can be attributed to a more plentiful blood supply to one ear. Reduction of the size of large ear lobes is a common patient request. Given that ear lobes don’t contain cartilage, it is possible to make them significantly smaller by excising a simple skin wedge.

In the case of prominent ears (ears which tend to stick out and not slope backwards at the same angle of the nose as they are meant to), pinnaplasty is an ideal option as it corrects lopsidedness and make the ears less apparent.

People who have worn heavy earrings may find that the weight over time has caused the hole to elongate, and in some cases, the lobe can even split. Fortunately, piercings like these can also be corrected with an ear reshaping surgery.

An otoplasty is aimed at giving the patient a sense of comfort in their own skin and a boost to their self-esteem. After an ear reshaping procedure, patients will no longer have to rely on mannerisms or hairstyles to mask their ears. The new found freedom from a simple pinnaplasty procedure can do wonders for self-confidence in people of all ages, regardless of their motivation for the surgery.

The Cadogan Clinic is London’s first specialised day surgery clinic and home to consultant, David Gault – the UK’s leading ear surgeon. If you are considering an ear reshaping procedure, regardless of the motivation, contact the Cadogan Clinic to book an initial consultation today.

It can be very difficult trying to decide and settle on one particular plastic surgeon. There are so many options available and it is such a huge decision which should not be taken lightly.

a perfect plastic surgeon is quite difficult to find, especially considering that both your health and your appearance will be in this specialist’s hands – and this is the main reason why you need to feel safe, secure and have trust in your plastic surgeon.

You can either research a recommendation that you saw on TV, the radio, or the Internet. Or, you can ask around to see if any of your friends or acquaintances have had any experience with surgeons in your area.

You can choose a cosmetic surgeon if he is recommended by a friend of yours or by another doctor who seems to know more than you in the medical area. If you are more eager to find out more about this profession you can search in the Internet some lists of reputable surgeons and choose a plastic surgeon for your appearance enhancement.

It is highly important for you to choose an experienced plastic surgeon, properly trained and with at least several successful and wonderful interventions in difficult cases.

Feeling comfortable in the presence of you doctor is extremely important. You should always schedule appointments to meet with potential surgeons to get to know them better. They will be operating on your body so it is imperative that you feel comfortable with them.

Watch out for black market procedures advertised on the Internet as “no money down” and “bargain basement priced surgery.” These terms scream illegal procedure and unlicensed non-professionals.

Be prepared to spend quite a bit depending on which surgeon that you decide to go with. These procedures can get pretty expensive. Cosmetic surgeries are know to range anywhere from five thousand to twenty five thousand. If you are going to spend that much on something, you better well do your research and know exactly what you are getting yourself into before you pull the trigger.

Michelle Sullivan is a consumer with much experience in the area of plastic surgeons. You can view her site on Toms-River Plastic Surgeons at http://www.TomsRiverplasticsurgeon.com.

Dandruff is one of the most common hair complaints both among men and women. Biologically, dandruff is formed when excessive dead skin cells are shed by the body. Even under normal conditions, dead cells on the scalp are continuously replaced by new ones. But in case of people who complain of dandruff problems, the life period of the skin cells is drastically reduced to about a quarter of the normal. So, they die early and thus are shed off as tiny white particles in huge numbers.

Dandruff can be treated easily in majority of the cases. However, in some cases dandruff might be indicative of more serious diseases like psoriasis, fungal infection and other skin infections.

Though it’s fairly difficult to diagnose the precise causes of dandruff, there are some common ones. Here is a list of few of them-

1. People with dry skin are more prone to dandruff problems. In fact, fry skin is one of the most common causes of dandruff. Dandruff arising out of dry skin tends to worsen during the winters as the moisture is sucked out of the skin by the harsh conditions.

2. Simultaneously, even people with excessively oily skin can have dandruff. This condition, called as seborrheic dermatitis is a skin ailment wherein various parts of the body are rich in oil glands. The dandruff flakes produced in this case are larger than the ones formed due to dry skin.

3. Dandruff can also be a result of a fungal growth in the scalp region. Fungi similar to yeast grow on the scalp, usually thriving on the oil released by certain glands. Contrary to popular belief, fungal growth is not related to personal hygiene. Even a cleanliness freak can have fungal infections.

4. Skin infection or Eczema is also a common cause of dandruff. If other parts of your body suffer from eczema, your scalp might also develop this skin infection, thus increasing the chances of dandruff.

John is a blogger who has been writing online for the past 3 years. His latest blog is about wooden rowboats. Check it out here:

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