Otoplasty (Ear) Surgery Recovery
The ear surgery might take several hours taking into account what is needed and the other additional procedures required. After the surgery you are transferred to the recovery room where you are monitored by the medical staff. You can fully recover from anesthesia on the same day and can go back home. A friend or family member must be there to drive you home and he/she must spend the first night after surgery with you. At home you must take adequate rest for a speedy recovery, just take precaution to keep your head elevated on two – three pillows. The head is inclined above your heart so as to prevent the complications of edema and swelling. In the recovery phase, try to eat a light and soft diet and keep away from hot liquids for few days. It is always good to avoid eating soon after the surgery as it might lead to postoperative nausea and vomiting.
It is advisable to take a light and balanced diet with ample rest for a better recovery. After the surgery you must take all the prescribed antibiotics. If you are advised to take some forms of narcotic like hydrocodone or vicodin, you must take as needed. You must not drive during your recovery phase if you are on narcotics. In the recovery phase of ear surgery, you can be kept on steroids, drugs to prevent nausea or sedatives depending upon your healing and recovery. Mostly a bandage is placed to cover the wound. If you are undertaking an otoplasty, a compressive dressing is placed for recovery. The dressing is used to hold the external ears in the apt position so you must not remove the bandage. The ear is checked up the very next day and any kind of one-sided pain must be immediately reported to the doctor. It might be an indication of complication of hematoma.
The bandage must remain in position for a week after which external sutures must be removed. After this you must clean the wound with a Q- tip soaked in hydrogen peroxide to get rid of all coating. Take away the crusts so that the wound can heal early with a less visible scar. After this you can apply an antibiotic ointment to the wound and avoid any scrubbing of wound. For a speedy recovery, you must be well aware of the risks and complications of ear surgery. The risks involved are the infection of the skin or of the cartilage of the ear, bleeding or hematoma formation, insufficient correction, reappearance, contour deformation or asymmetric rectification, altogether requiring a secondary surgery. Other complications are disagreement with regard to corrective ear surgery, permanent or transitory lack of sensation in the skin of the ear or face.
A risk generally involved in torn ear lobe surgery is overgrowth of scar tissue or a keloid formation or non-subsiding scars. The recovery after the surgery might be very slow leading to acute complications of lingering pain or discomfort in the area. The cosmetic surgery if not performed by expert hand has a risk of tapering of the external ear canal that can lead to ear complications. Another risk involved in ear surgeries is suture extrusion. The lasting sutures on the ear skin are used to preserve the shape but they may become obvious via the skin, thus ultimately needing a removal. Myringotomy and ear tube surgery is usually done to drain ear fluid, thus preventing ear infections when antibiotics are not effective and the infections become persistent. A pressure is built up in the middle ear that shrinks the fluid accumulation. It is done under a general anesthesia and has a speedy recovery.
Summary: Certain precautions must be taken for a speedy recovery from ear surgery. The head must be above your heart, the diet should be light, the medication must be taken timely and the bandage must be managed as directed by the surgeon.
