To prevent formation of a cauliflower ear deformity, an auricular hematoma should be drained and a compression dressing applied as demonstrated in this video. An auricular block is demonstrated briefly in this video and in greater detail in the video titled Auricular Block.
Check out the Auricular Block Video
Mobile Video (180p) 35.7 MB - MP4Small Video (400p) 36.1 MB - MP4Standard Video (720p) 181 MB - MP4HD Video (1080p) 154 MB - MP4
mike p. - March 5, 2021 6:50 AM
what's the general time line of length from injury that this needs to be decompressed before changes will be permanent or may no long benefit from decompression? general cosmetic concerns typically send these to ENT if possible
Jaan H. - March 9, 2021 8:03 AM
Usually 2ish weeks before they harden
Jaan H. - March 9, 2021 8:31 AM
It's easy to tell if it will benefit from decompression if it's tender to touch and soft. Important to note a lot of these patients are going to be wrestlers/fighters that don't care about cosmetics and will just want you to do a needle aspiration so they can get back to training rather than take a week off.
J. Abraham Lopez, M.D. - March 9, 2021 11:51 AM
This video was great. Here is link to YouTube video demonstrating splinting the ear with sutures: https://youtu.be/SNbsp4YBcBk. However, unrelated to this procedure, could you review the importance of finger lacerations and resultant neurological deficits encountered in ER. In some cases, slight numbness does not require further eval, in other cases numbness and/or weakness (such as the radial aspect of index finger where nerve injury could affect radial adduction of the thumb) are very relevant and require close follow up by hand surgeon/plastic surgeon. There are other important and likely high risk medicolegal aspects of these hand injuries. A quick review would be appreciated.