Simple
Affordable
Surgery-Free
Life-Changing
Permanent Results
Easy To Use
Pain-Free
Surgery-Free
EarBuddies splints take advantage of the natural process of cartilage-hardening to reshape the soft cartilage of baby's ears, resulting in a permanent, surgery-free correction.
This fixes baby ear problems long before they are aware of them, avoiding the emotional impact of bullying & teasing, and the costs & complications of surgery. And by treating early and avoiding surgery, EarBuddies provide better results, without risk, at lower cost.
With a thirty year history of success and safety, EarBuddies is the world’s best selling Early Ear Correction™ system, and has helped thousands of babies to grow up comfortable and confident with their ears.
EarBuddies have been changing children’s lives, before they’re old enough to realise, for more than 30 years.
EarBuddies are a safe solution, avoiding the risks and complications of surgery & anaesthesia.
While post-op pain can be managed, complication rates e.g. scarring can be as high as 10%.
EarBuddies are a safe solution, avoiding
the risks of surgery & anaesthesia
The alternative to splintage is surgery, which is best undertaken from the age of six years, when the cartilage is hard enough to prevent the stitches from "cheese-wiring" through it, and before the child is teased. Whilst prominent ears are relatively easy to fix for an experienced surgeon, the other conditions described here are considerably more difficult to correct. Surgery is not always successful, however, and complications can arise. Bleeding and infection are the most common, but post-operative deformity can ensue. Complication rates vary between surgeons and according to the technique used, but figures of up to 5% are by no means unusual. Complete loss of the ear and, very rarely, death are also documented.
|
Failed otoplasty |
Keloid scar |
Post-op 'M' deformity |
Keloid scar |
EarBuddies are simple to use
& include a clear Fitting Guide
No need for time off school or
work later in life
EarBuddies are affordable,
in line with our philosophy
EarBuddies reshape the soft cartilage of baby's ears, so it naturally hardens in the right shape
EarBuddies provide permanent, life-
long ear correction
Choice of fitting at home or
Professional Fitting
EarBuddies corrects ear deformities before children can be teased
Stick-Out Ears can make life miserable,
and lead to "poor performance in school"
EarBuddies are far more affordable, and
likely to achieve a better result
Let Your Child Love Their Ears...
“Many ear deformities can be corrected at birth by a splintage device”
"Many ear deformities can be corrected at birth by a splintage device, which is essentially what EarBuddies provides. The cartilage in the ear is floppy at birth because of the effect of oestrogen, a hormone produced by the mother, on its structure. It slowly hardens into adulthood but this happens most rapidly between birth and one year. During this period, splintage can work really well. In a newborn it can correct a deformed or sticking-out ear within two weeks; in a three-month-old within ten weeks."
“Early splinting of neonatal ear deformities has been proven to be successful”
"Early splinting of neonatal ear deformities has been proven to be successful but the opportunity to splint is frequently missed due to lack of awareness amongst healthcare personnel."
"Many are told it will improve with age, .... when in fact the opposite is true."
"Many are told it will improve with age, or that simple taping will work, when in fact the opposite is true. Odd-shaped ears, which do not become completely normal in appearance within 48 hours of birth should be splinted.”
“When correctly applied and well tolerated, they can reduce ear prominence.”
"When correctly applied and well tolerated, they can reduce ear prominence. Information should be provided by those advising the parents of babies (GPs, Health Visitors etc) e.g. at the time of their first hearing test of the availability of such devices."
"... a very effective technique for ... neonates with ... auricular anomalies."
"Ear splintage can be a very effective technique for treatment of neonates with deformational auricular anomalies. The psychological distress caused by prominent ears can be considerable. The main clinical significance of prominent ears is the aesthetic problems, which can lead to a reduced quality of life, reduced self-esteem, social avoidance behaviour and poor performance in school. Teasing at school causes both short-term unhappiness and a potential long-term impact on perception of self-image and self-worth. Children and adults alike with ears that stick out may experience a damaged psyche secondary to outside ridicule and self-criticism.”
"... it is possible to reshape it by applying a small splint to the rim.”
"When an ear is noted to be prominent within the first few weeks of life, it is possible to reshape it by applying a small splint to the rim.”
"It is vital that ... midwives are educated about early detection.”
"It is vital that neonatal paediatricians, obstetricians, general practitioners, and midwives are educated about early detection [of ear deformity] and how to initiate treatment themselves.”
“Splintage is a simple, safe and non-invasive procedure”
"Splintage is a simple, safe and non-invasive procedure for the correction of prominent ears.”
“elegant technique .. should be practised on a wider scale than is done today"
“Ear splinting is an elegant technique that should be practised on a wider scale than is done today. Surprisingly, this technique is relatively unknown to plastic surgeons and is hardly ever communicated to the general public.”
“... a cost effective and simple procedure which should be encouraged"
“Early splintage of pinna abnormalities in the neonatal period appears a cost effective and simple procedure which should be encouraged”
"... effective technique that should be more frequently offered to parents ...”
“Excellent results were achieved in 82% of the splinted ears. In the other 18% results were satisfactory or good. No complications occurred in the series. Ear splintage is an effective technique that should be more frequently offered to parents of affected neonates.”
When your baby is born, the cartilage framework of the ears is extremely soft because of Mum’s hormones. Some squashing of the ears is natural at birth, but if the ears remain an odd shape after 48 hours, or if they start to stick out, this will quite quickly become permanent as the cartilage hardens.
EarBuddies splints re-mould the cartilage folds in a baby's ears to restore the natural curves and hold the ear close to the side of the head so that when the framework hardens in the controlled shape, there is a permanent, surgery-free correction.
“Baby will grow into those ears”
"This is almost never the case. Often the opposite is true - it is common that ears slowly drift out between birth and 6 months."
“Just stick them back with tape”
"Taping an ear back without the splint in place is not effective, and can cause kinking, flattening or notching of the rim of the ear, which may not become noticeable until later in life."
"Don’t worry, the ears will get better on their own"
"If an ear sticks out or an obvious ear deformity remains 48 hours after birth, it should be splinted as soon as possible."
“Those ears will need surgery”
"Most ear deformities can be corrected by EarBuddies."
“EarBuddies won't work now - baby is too old”
"Early splintage is always easiest and quickest, but we have had many success stories from babies starting splintage up to 8 months old. Even 18 months may not be too late, but it will require much more persistence and a longer splintage period."
At least 5% of people have abnormally shaped or Stick-Out Ears. Stick-Out Ears are the most common ear deformity, and around 2% of babies develop Stick-Out Ears in the first 6 months of life. EarBuddies can be fitted by parents at home in under 20 minutes.
An independent study at the Hospital for Sick Children in Glasgow in 2012 showed a 78% success rate in newborns when splints are fitted by parents, with 73% rating ease of use as 'easy' or 'incredibly easy'. With early splintage and dedication, fantastic results continue to be achieved by parents at home.
While the majority of EarBuddies are fitted by parents at home, when professionally fitted and the treatment supervised, success rates rise to up to 92%, even in older babies or those with difficult ear problems.
Professional fitting combines the surgery-free, permanent correction of EarBuddies with the clinical experience of healthcare specialists. Choose amongst our global network of EarBuddies Professionals.
EarBuddies are registered with the FDA in the USA, MHRA in the UK, and comply with MDR 2017/745 in the European Union.
