One of the parts of the body that often goes unnoticed by the naked eye is the ears. Unless they are very loose or especially large, you probably do not pay much attention to the shape of your ears or notice those of the other people around you. Still, there are always curious people who want to know more about the different types of ears.
And it is that, despite sharing identical physical elements, they can vary a lot between individuals. Just as there are no two hands or two identical eyes, there are also no two traced ears. For this reason, it can be affirmed that there are common traits or patterns between people, but the human being is very diverse.
Types of ears according to their projection
Taking into account that human beings have common physical elements, the ears can be classified into different typologies. The projection, shape and size are the main references to classify them.
The following varieties correspond to the classification of the ears according to their projection:
- Glued ears: they are ears that are especially attached to the skull, as its name indicates. This type of human ears can be a problem for those who have small ears.
- Separate ears : this type of ears is very easy to identify since they are popularly known as “flap ears”. To consider that some ears are separated or detached, the pavilion must protrude more than 2 centimeters from the skull.
Types of ears according to their shape
Ears can also be classified based on their shape. In this sense, these are the main varieties and the names of types of ears of the same:
- Vertical ears: These are very common in long ears. They have a straight and prolonged vertical shape.
- Rounded ears: they are ears with a circle shape, that is, without any type of prominent vertex.
- Prominent lobe ears: are those ears whose lobe protrudes above the rest of the ear.
- Pointed ears : these are considered “elf ears”, that is, those that end in a point on the upper edge.
- Snail-shaped ears: it is one of the most atypical varieties: the internal structure of the ear pinna is similar to the shell of a snail.
- Slanted Ears: Refers to ears whose upper edge has a slant.
Types of ears according to their size
There are also different types of ears that exist according to their size. They are the following:
- Small ears : they are flattened and short ears.
- Long ears – Just the opposite of small ears. They are usually well defined and narrow in width, presenting a greater extension from the lower lobe to the upper border.
- Medium ears : These are ears that are halfway between the two previous varieties. It is the most common type, having a variable range of size.
Other types of ears that exist
Beyond the types of ears that exist according to their projection, shape and size, other varieties of ears that are more complicated to find can also be differentiated. Now, what are the types of ears we are referring to? They are those that present some anomaly or aesthetic problem, requiring plastic surgery.
The types of ears that may need plastic surgery due to an anomaly are the following:
- Inclined ears : these are cases in which the inclination of the upper edge is very pronounced, covering the surface of the ear and requiring an operation to be remodeled. This problem is also identified as cryptotia.
- Protruding ears: this is the most representative case of anomalous ears that need plastic surgery. The alteration of the ears is very visible, affecting the self-esteem of the person who has ears of this type. Therefore, it is best to go through the operating room to operate on them.
- Small ears : they are unsightly, but they can also cause a hearing problem since in very serious cases they can block the entire ear canal. In addition, there may be a complete absence of ears. This problem is also known as microtia.
- Alterations of the lobe : the problems found in the lobe can also be corrected with plastic surgery. They can be due to birth defects or be caused by accidents, earrings, etc.
- Pointed ears : These are the ones referred to as ” elf ears “. In many cases, it generates a physical complex for those who have this type of ears, which is why surgery is usually used in order to correct their shape.
All the cases presented in this section have a solution. The most direct is otoplasty, that is, a type of cosmetic surgery in which a series of minimally invasive and simple operations are performed. Thanks to these surgical interventions, the appearance of the ears is modified by correcting the prominent pavilions, the size is enlarged or reduced or the lobe is reconstructed.
To carry out this type of operation, local anesthesia is generally chosen and postoperative recovery is very simple.
