Aim: Prominent ears are a common congenital malformation and are associated with low self-esteem, social isolation and diminished school performance. Our goal was to evaluate the influence of otoplasty on children's quality of life (QoL).
Material and methods: Patients submitted to otoplasty from 2016 to 2018 were summoned for a reevaluation. Seventy patients and respective caregivers agreed to participate. Surgical, demographic and clinical data were reviewed from electronic registries.
Two sets of inquiries were performed: Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory 4.0 (for parent and child) and an adaptation of the Glasgow Children Benefit Inventory (GCBI-b). Fifteen patients were excluded for incomplete inquiries.
Results: Fifty-five patients were included, 70.9% were males. Median age at surgery was 7.7 ± 3.3 years. Aesthetic dissatisfaction was the main previous negative experience. Median self-report quality of life was 85.6% and parent-report was 86.9%. Median GCBI-b was +20.5, indicating an improvement in patients' QoL. Bullying and high parental expectations for life change post-surgery were predictive of higher GCBI-b scores (p < 0.05). Ninety-six percent of parents would recommend surgery to other children.
Conclusions: Otoplasty is a valid treatment option for prominent ears in children,improving not only aesthetics but also health-related QoL.
Keywords: Children; Otoplasty; Pediatric surgery; Prominent ears; Quality of life.
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