LA&HA - Journal of the Laser and Health Academy
Volume: 2021
| number:
1
ISSN (web): 1855-9921
CASE REPORT: Sutureless Earlobe Repair using 2940 nm Er:YAG Laser
Gunay Mikayilova, Maša Bucik
Pages: onlineFirst
Recent fashion and cultural trends have led to an increase in earlobe piercing in men and women. Wearing heavy earrings or pulling on the ring can cause an earlobe defect. Various techniques have been reported for the repair of cleft earlobe, like Z-plasty, L-plasty and V-plasty. In this paper we describe a method using ablative Er:YAG laser that provides quick healing time and minimal adverse effects, which we used in 12 female patients with earlobe deformities. The proposed procedure does not require cutting of the tissue or stitches, but utilizes a combination of deep Er:YAG laser peel and fractional ablative laser resurfacing of the skin inside and around the defect, followed by fixation using an adhesive surgical patch. After a short healing time of around 10 days, all treated defects were repaired. There were no adverse effects and the patients’ satisfaction with the results was high.
Key words: earlobe, ablative ER:YAG, earlobe defect.