EARLOBE RECONSTRUCTION USING A SUBCUTANEOUS ISLAND PEDICLE FLAP AFTERRESECTION OF EARLOBE KELOID

BACKGROUND. A large keloid of the earlobe is a difficult case in which to obtain a satisfying result by nonsurgical therapies. In this case, surgical resection of keloids should be considered as a first step in therapy. However, it is difficult to reconstruct the earlobe cosmetic ally after resection of the lesion. OBJECTIVE. To discuss the usefulne ss of the subcutaneous island pedicle flap in earlobe keloid surgery. METHODS. Five earlobe keloids in five patients (four females and one m ale) were resected and reconstructed by subcutaneous island pedicle fl ap. RESULTS. In all patients, there were no keloid recurrences and no adjuvant therapies used during the follow-up periods, which ranged fro m 10 to 26 months. The reconstructed earlobes were almost symmetrical. CONCLUSION. In the selected cases, use of the subcutaneous island ped icle flap is a viable method to be considered for reconstruction after resection of earlobe keloids. (C) 1998 by the American Society for De rmatologic Surgery, Inc.