How Long Until the Finger in my Ear is Gone?

Question

I had Mohs surgery immediately in front of my ear ten days ago and the scar is the length of my ear. Even though my ear wasn't touched, except for a teeny bit of the lobe, it feels like I have a finger in my ear, and sometimes I ache a lot below/behind my ear. My ear also feels really uncomfortable when I make certain facial movements. Is this normal and how long until the finger goes away?

Sonia Badreshia-Bansal, MD · Answer

Thank you for your question. Any surgical procedure involving the cutting of skin and the deeper layers of tissue, will violate both cutaneous and some underlying small nerves, which can lead to the feeling of numbness or some foreign-object-like feelings at the area of surgery, or near the surgical site (such as a "finger in the ear" as in this example. While most nerve-associated feelings typically resolve a month or two after surgery, in some cases, there may be an experience of numbness or other related issues that can take anywhere for 6-12 months to resolve.  Depending on the exact location and extent of surgery, this is a question best posed to your dermatologist or surgeon. I hope this helps.

F. Victor Rueckl, MD (in memoriam) · Answer

What often happens is after a surgery like this is that there is quite a bit of swelling, and this swelling can even be in places nearby the site, but places that weren't necessarily touched during surgery. In general swelling lasts about 2 weeks so this pain and aching should subside in the coming days as the swelling goes away. If it's not better in a week I'd follow up with your surgeon (if you don't already have a follow-up scheduled) to make sure everything looks normal and is healing fine.

How Long Until the Finger in my Ear is Gone?

Answers (2)

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