Earlobe repair is quickly becoming one of the most requested procedures in the United States. More and more people are coming in to get their earlobes repaired. In some cases, folks have waited years before seeking earlobe repair. Some have removed their gauges or heavy earrings, the soft tissue has shrunken a bit, but there is still a significant hole. Elongated earlobe holes, or a split earlobe, can be caused by many things: Heavy earrings worn over long periods of time, gauges placed in the earlobe, with increasing size, weight and time, earrings getting caught and then pulled (typically long earrings snagging a dress or other clothing), children pulling on earrings, multiple piercings too close together or too close to the bottom of the lobe, sudden trauma. Typically, earlobe repairs are done as an outpatient, under local anesthesia, in the office. Typically, we ask our patients to wait at least three months before re-piercing their ear. We also ask that the new piercing be at least 3 mm from the old piercing site.
