Dog Ear After 10 Weeks of Neck and Face Lift?

Question

I had a almost two inches scar under my chin. After 10 weeks is looking like" dog ear." My doctor says that he can fixed opening the incision again become this widther. I m worry at this point because I think the scar is wide enough, so after it is fixed this will be very noticeable. What can be another option to avoid this procedure.? Thank u so much!

Kenneth D. Steinsapir, MD · Answer

It is unusual to have a dog ear in this location. It is unusually for the sub mental incision to be this big. Generally dog ears do improve but by 10 weeks one expects to see much improvement to be evident. Fixing the dog ear should be a minor, office based procedure. Consider posting a photograph for a more specific answer.

John Michael Thomassen, MD · Answer

10 weeks is still early for a scar revision.  I would attempt depending on how much consternation it is causing you.  Otherwise, I would wait 6 months.  In the meantime, massage with silicone gel cream.  If you do decide to revise, have your surgeon undermine the area that caused the dog ear.  Simply undermining will eliminate it without having to extend the scar an additional length.

Kenneth Hughes, MD · Answer

Revision of the submental scar can be performed after about 6 months or so. The contours do tend to improve with time.  Kenneth Hughes, MD Los Angeles, CA

Lawrence Kass, MD · Answer

I would suggest continued treatment with steroid injections within the scar and topical scar treatment and more time. I understand your hesitation to avoid dog ear excision given the already long length of the incision, and although it is hard to say based on just the photos you submitted, I agree with you.

Gary L. Ross, MBChB, FRCS · Answer

There are always pros and cons of surgery and I would continue massaging for a number of months before considering this. All scar revisions lead to new scars and although improvements can be made the scar is always longer. Wide scars occur when there is usually tension on the wound - this is uncommon in this region unless skin has been removed. If no skin has been removed I would not be concerned about the scar being wider. You may need a little liposuction at the edges of the dog ears as well if you choose surgery in the long term.I would definitely massage over the coming months. As others have said tping the ends down can help and elastoplast tape with a silicone strip inside can help to soften the scar.

Philip Young, MD · Answer

This can be corrected with excising the dog ears. It will be wider but this should heal great if done correctly. I'm confident your plastic surgeon will do a great job. If it is red and irritated it could be some inflammation going on and steroid injections may help. Over time it should help as well and you may not need anything done to it other than pressure dressings and massage. This would should be evaluated by our plastic surgeon.

Barry L. Eppley, MD, DMD · Answer

Dogears at the ends of a submental incision are not rare. If they have not flattened out after six months, a minor surgical revision of them wil solve the problem. It will extend the scar slightly but that should not be a visible problem as these scars heal very well.

Robert L. Kraft, MD, FACS · Answer

Dogears are easily corrected and I would not be dissuaded by the thought of a revision in terms of the scar width. However,you are only 10 weeks postop and I am not altogether convinced that you do have a dogear rather than either some redundancy that needs correction or something that needs time to heal. See your plastic surgeon, who can best assess whether you are a candidate for injection for scar hypertrophy or require any other treatment at this time.

Todd C. Miller, MD · Answer

It is difficult to say exactly what can be done without seeing pictures. It is possible that you have some skin redundancy in the incision site or thickness in the scar. It is a little bit early to attempt a scar revision. I would attempt a series of kenalog injections to see if the scar will settle out and become less noticeable. If that does not work it is very reasonable to go back and revise the scar by cutting it out and re-closing the wound. This typically results in a good outcome.

Alan M. Engler, MD, FACS (retired) · Answer

With the understanding that it's hard to tell via the photos alone, I think that you might benefit from a bit of lipo of each of the dogears.  Simply extending the incision risks leaving a similar appearance but in a more visible location (actually, was skin removed via that incision?  That can contribute to this look.)  If not, even better.  A little lipo of the fullness, a procedure which can easily be done under local anesthesia alone, may help flatten things out to the point that they're not noticeable.  I would try to avoid a surgical revision of the dogears in this location (at the ends of a tummy tuck is, of course, a different story).

	I hope that this helps and good luck,

	Dr. E

Dog Ear After 10 Weeks of Neck and Face Lift?

Answers (13)

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