Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Department, Thousand Buddha Mountain Hospital, Shandong Province Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Department, Thousand Buddha Mountain Hospital, Shandong Province Wang Yan l What is congenital microtia and is it common? Congenital microtia is a kind of outer ear deformity caused by congenital dysplasia of the auricle, often accompanied by atresia of the external auditory canal, middle ear deformity and maxillofacial deformity. Every 7,000 people have an auricle or microtia, and more than 90% of them have unilateral ear loss, which is more common in males, and the deformity is more common on the right side, and less than 10% bilaterally. There are three degrees of ear deformity according to the severity of the deformity. degree I: all parts of the auricle are recognizable, there is an auricular cavity and an external auditory canal opening, but the contour is small. Grade II: Most of the structures of the auricle are not recognizable, the residual ear is irregular, peanut-shaped, boat-shaped or weenie-shaped, and the external auditory canal is atretic. Degree III: The residual ear is only a small flap or mound, or there is only an ectopic earlobe. Very rarely, the auricle is completely undeveloped and there is no localized external ear structure, called “auria”. Patients with microtia should undergo reconstructive surgery. l When should reconstructive surgery be performed? The auricle grows rapidly in childhood, and the auricle of a 3-year-old child is already 85% of that of an adult; at the same time, taking into account the impact on the psychological development of the child, it should be operated as early as possible. Generally, the best age for surgery is after 6 weeks of age and before puberty (around 14 years old). l What are the methods of external ear reconstruction? At present, there are two main surgical methods used in China: Nagata method of stage II ear reconstruction and skin and soft tissue expander method of ear reconstruction.