[Prominent ears. Normal distance between the auricular edge and the side of the head]

The desire of the patients or their parents for surgical correction of protruding ears is not always in accord with the degree of deformity. As complications can not only ruin a good result but can make the situation worse, some degree of deformity must be present. In order to achieve some guidance in this evaluation we have measured the maximum distance between the side of the head and the helix border in 102 girls and 81 boys, aged 6-16 years. We found a range of ten to thirty-three. The mean value increased with age, and the distance in males was 2.89 mm greater than that found in females.