Silicon Ear Attached to Skull with Magnets

Microtia is a fairly rare medical condition, which is encountered in about 1 in 10,000 newborn babies and is characterized by a small or inexistent external ear. Most patients are born with an underdeveloped auditory organ, while others have the auditory canal blocked as well. For these people, reconstructive surgery has been the only hope of receiving a regular ear look-alike until now.

But researchers at the Loyola University Health System have managed to complete the first surgery in which the fake ear is not made out of rib cage cartilage, or other similar materials, which are usually employed for this type of work. Rather, the organ is entirely formed of a silicon polymer, and it hasn't even been fixed to the head using adhesives or screws, but with magnets.

Dr. Sam Marzo, a ptolaryngologist at the Chicago care center, has succeeded in replacing patient Matthew Houdek's left “bump” with an entirely artificial ear, using nothing more than three screws and a lot of operating experience. Each of the three devices that have been screwed inside Houdek's skull are outfitted with magnets at their ends, as has been the polymer prosthetic ear that he is currently wearing. It only takes a few seconds for him to put it on in the morning, and the same amount of time to take it off when showering or sleeping.

The patient is very satisfied with his operation, and says that the implant looks just like the real thing. He now has an increased self-esteem, as over the past few years he carried around an ear implant that was smaller than normal. He got the first surgery when he was younger, but, naturally, the prosthesis didn't grow as he did. So this was a great cause of discomfort for him, and now it's gone.

The prosthetic ear itself has been made by facial prosthetist Gregory Gion, from Madison, Wisconsin. It closely resembles the real one, right down to little details such as blood vessels. “And my mom almost cried when she saw it,” Houdek said after the surgery.