Ear Piercing & Earlobe Repair

So, You Ripped a Hole in Your Earlobe—Here’s How to Fix It

Earlobe repair procedure is done to improve the shape, size, or contour of the ears. Earlobe repair is done specifically to correct tears or splits in the earlobe caused by trauma whereas a similar surgery, earlobe reduction, is performed when the skin on the earlobe begins to droop and sag. This surgery can correct partial, full, or multiple tears in the ear. Partial tears are commonly caused when a pierced ear is elongated and stretched with large gauges or heavy earrings. Full tears occur when the bottom lobe of the ear is completely separated. Multiple tears are caused by either external trauma or when multiple earring holes are torn completely through the bottom lobe.

During the short procedure, your ear will be numbed with a local anesthetic, rendering the procedure relatively painless. After removing the damaged portion of your earlobe, your dermatologist will join the skin on your ear together with many small sutures.

Most earlobe repair procedures recovery takes about one week

How is an earlobe repair performed?

A small amount of local anesthetic placed into the lobe, and high precision instruments are used to carefully excise the skin around the discrepancy. Then a few very tiny sutures are placed to bring skin edges together, and these stay in about a week.

Can I have my ear re-pierced after this procedure?

Yes, in most cases you can. This is done about 6 to 8 weeks after the sutures are removed.

How long does the procedure take?

You will be surprised to know that it only takes about 30 minutes to repair one earlobe, and for both lobes, approximately 45 minutes are needed.