Treatment of Prominent Ears and Otoplasty: A Contemporary Review

Prominent ears affect approximately 5% of the population and can have a significant psychological impact on patients. A wide variety of otoplasty techniques have been described, all sharing the goal of re-creating the normal appearance of the ear and achieving symmetry between the 2 sides. Recent trends in otoplasty techniques have consistently moved toward less invasive options, ranging from nonsurgical newborn ear molding to cartilage-sparing surgical techniques and even incisionless, office-based procedures. Herein, we review anatomy of the external ear, patient evaluation, the evolution of nonsurgical and surgical otoplasty techniques, otoplasty outcomes, and future trends for treatment of prominent ears.