Abstract
Background
Microtia is a congenital abnormality characterised by a deformed or absent auricle, which can be reconstructed surgically using autologous rib cartilage. Long-term symmetry in size is an important goal. The optimal age for surgery and sizing of the framework is still under debate, as it has not been clearly shown if the reconstructed ear grows. Our objective was to determine if the reconstructed ear grows and to compare the growth with the normal ear.
Methods
Twenty-two patients were selected in this retrospective study. Digital morphometry was used to measure the length of the reconstructed and normal ears. An initial photograph had been taken after the reconstruction at a median of 11.2 years (range 8.0–12.5 years) of age and a second photograph at a median of 16.3 years (range 14.5–21.6 years). The median follow-up time was 5.6 years (range 2.1–10.6 years). The differences in length in the first and second photograph were calculated, and paired Student’s t tests and Mann–Whitney U tests were used for the analysis.
Results
The mean growth of the reconstructed ears was 0.62 cm (95 % CI 0.43–0.81) and that of the normal ears was 0.53 cm (95 % CI 0.38–0.68). There was no significant difference between the growth of the normal and the reconstructed ears (p = 0.26).
Conclusions
The reconstructed ears grew during the studied time-interval, and this was most likely due to growth of the actual cartilage. There was no significant difference between the growth on the reconstructed and normal sides.
Level of evidence: Level III, risk/prognostic study.
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Ethical standards
This study was not considered to be harmful in any way to the study subjects, and all information used was acquired from already existing medical records. For this type of study, formal consent from a local ethics committee is not required.
Conflict of interest
Emma Roos, Sven-Olof Wikström and Martin Öberg declare that they have no conflict of interest.
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Parents or legal guardians provided written consent for the inclusion of patients and use of their images in this study.
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Roos, E., Wikström, SO. & Öberg, M. Growth of ears reconstructed from autologous rib cartilage. Eur J Plast Surg 38, 443–448 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00238-015-1113-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00238-015-1113-2