Eartox or dermal fillers for ears, will you give it a try?

Just like our face, our ears to need rejuvenation to enhance our aesthetic quotient.

We hear it too often how Botox or facial rejuvenation of any kind help to transform the face smoothen the fine lines, vanish those crow s feet, make the face look younger and what not. But seldom do we talk like that for our ears. In fact, we don t talk about ears in terms of beauty. The reason being we fail to realise that our ears that sit quietly on either side of our face actually add to our aesthetic quotient. They give the face the right frame and make one look appealing and pleasing. Don t believe us? Well, photoshop one of your pictures and chop of your ears; you will know what we are talking about. So for a youthful and younger look just like your skin, your ears also need a bit of rejuvenation to improve your looks. Did you know ultratherapy is the new in-thing for men?

The facial skin has specialized fibres called elastin and collagen whose core functions are to retain moisture, keep the skin supple and elastic. There is a little amount of fat tissues present in the skin that helps the collagen and elastin to do their job giving the face a healthy attractive look devoid of lines and wrinkles. But as one age there is a significant loss of tissues, elastin and collagen which makes the face look older, droopy and flaccid. All of this has an effect on the ears and the earlobes that have no bony or cartilaginous support start drooping. This is why you need to give a serious thought to ear rejuvenation when you do the same with your face, says Dr Mohan Thomas, Senior Cosmetic Surgeon, Cosmetic Surgery Institute, Mumbai. A cosmetic surgeon tells us about the most favoured cosmetic procedures undertaken by women.

The typical changes in the earlobes happen in the form of elongation, wrinkling, drooping, drying and thinning and the problem is amplified for women who wear earrings (particularly heavy ones). These changes in the shape of the earlobes affect the overall shape of the ears, making them look bigger and unbalanced with the face. Often, it s impossible to hide this imperfection with hair as well, making it an obvious aesthetic concern. Know why laser treatment is the best way to get rid of hair from the ears.

This is why when one looks for options like a facelift, earlobe rejuvenation should be given a thought simultaneously. It involves treatments that improve the damaged skin of the earlobe, fix elongation and improve texture. Assessment of the earlobe is very important to make a treatment plan.

Here Dr Thomas lists down some options:

1. Eartox- This is a misnomer as no Botulinum toxin is injected here. This is a name given for earlobe rejuvenation done by hyaluronic acid based dermal fillers which are injected into the earlobe in order to smooth the area s skin, plump tissue and lift the lobes for a more youthful appearance. This gives a plumper, more rounded, smaller and youthful looking earlobes. This temporary procedure involves increasing the earlobe volume by injecting it with US FDA approved hyaluronic acid based fillers. This procedure is carried out under local anaesthesia and if done by well-trained physicians takes only about 30 minutes. The results last for a few months at which time further injections will be needed. This procedure does not change the shape of the earlobe and only plumps it up.
2. Fat graft- In this procedure patient s own fat is taken and is injected into the earlobe. The result is outstanding and permanent. This is a short surgical procedure done in daycare with minimal downtime.
3. Earlobe lift- This procedure is done in people whose earlobes have stretched due to heavy earrings or other causes. This involves removing the extra tissue and shaping the earlobe to get a youthful appearance. The ear holes can also be reduced as well as repositioned in this procedure.

However, of the three procedures Eartox is a safe and simple procedure that rejuvenates the earlobes to make them look youthful albeit temporarily.

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