Piercing

How to make tunnels in the ears

From the material you will learn all the most important things about, how tunnels are made in the ears, you can read about the features and options of the procedure, see photos and options for ear jewelry.

How to make tunnels in the ears – photo examples

How to make tunnels in the ears – all the most important

A tunnel is a hole in a lobe from 1 to 5 cm in diameter, which is obtained by slow and prolonged stretching, or by directly cutting a hole of the required diameter from a surgeon.

You can make a tunnel in the lobe from an existing hole using special expanders that can be made of surgical steel, gold, silver, titanium, but not plastic or silicone..

When working, the earlobe and dilator must be treated with an antiseptic. Next, the expander is inserted into the hole, and the diameter of the hole is increased by 1 mm every day. Faster stretching can lead to swelling of the earlobe and further complications, such as impairment of hearing, and in the worst case, paralysis of the facial nerve.

Before the swelling subsides and the redness subsides, the expander is not removed from the lobe and the jewelry is not inserted. To prevent the lobe from festering, the hole must be treated with an antiseptic every day, for example, chlorhexidine..

Stretching methods

For example, punching, which is carried out under local anesthesia, while the diameter of the desired size is immediately cut out in the earlobe with a scalpel.

Tunnels are also made using Teflon tape. The required amount of it is wound on the decoration, further increasing the number of layers and thus the diameter of the hole. But this method is ineffective, since it makes it possible to obtain disproportionate holes in the lobe. Therefore, it is still better to turn to special expanders..

Possible complications

With improper care, the following complications may occur.

peeling of the earlobe, which can cause jewelry made from the wrong material. In this case, the decoration is replaced with a decoration made of a different material, and the hole in the earlobe is treated with an antiseptic, for example, chlorhexidine or hydrogen peroxide.
Unaesthetic growth on the lobe. It may appear due to the lobe stretching too quickly. This growth is easily removed by surgery..
Infection. The hole in the lobe may begin to fester, and in the case of a weakened immune system, it may even be necessary to undergo antibiotic treatment.
Allergic reaction to the material from which the jewelry is made. If the lobe only turns red, swells, but does not fester, then a simple replacement of one piece of jewelry with jewelry made of another material will help..

Tunnel maintenance

The daily maintenance of the tunnel must be very careful and careful. In the first month, it is not recommended to treat the lobe with iodine or brilliant green or alcohol. It is also not recommended to touch the wound with hair or a hat, rub it, use a silver jewelry. If within a month the hole becomes inflamed, then you need to immediately consult a doctor, but if everything heals without inflammation, then everyday care can already be simplified.

Every day after washing or taking a shower, you need to:

It is necessary to moisten a sterile piece of cotton wool in a 0.9% aqueous solution of sodium chloride and press it against the lobe
Scroll the decoration gently, thus cleaning the hole.
Next, you need to treat the lobe with tea tree oil, and gently remove its remnants with a napkin

As you can see from the description, it is not difficult to make a tunnel and take care of it, you just need to follow the recommendations.

It should be remembered that getting rid of the tunnel, if necessary, is not so difficult. For example, small tunnels overgrow themselves, but holes with a diameter of about 4 cm or more are sewn up in the clinic..

How tunnels are made in the ears – photo examples from 03.13.2017