Ear cartilage is one of the materials surgeons can use to build or support a nose, especially in a revision (secondary) rhinoplasty when the original cartilage has been used or weakened. Its use depends on why it is chosen, how long the evidence says it lasts, and what the donor site involves.

Key takeaways

  • Ear (conchal) cartilage is one of several graft sources for the nose, usually after septal cartilage, and sometimes in revision surgery.
  • The claim that ear cartilage resists absorption is not settled; one small study found more tip resorption with ear than with rib cartilage.
  • Taking ear cartilage leaves a donor site with its own healing risks, so where the graft comes from, and why, is worth asking.

Why would a surgeon use ear cartilage?

Rhinoplasty often needs extra cartilage to support the tip or smooth the bridge. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) says grafts are most often taken from the septum, that cartilage from the ear is occasionally used, and that rib cartilage is used rarely. All four sources are set side by side in our guide to nasal cartilage grafts.

A 2024 review of rib cartilage in secondary rhinoplasty, Bagunaid and colleagues, describes septal cartilage as usually the first option, with rib cartilage considered when septal cartilage is insufficient. In revisions, earlier operations may have already used or reduced the septal cartilage, which is why other sources come into play. A 2018 case report on secondary nasal repair after cleft lip surgery, by Mundra and colleagues, says conchal cartilage, from the bowl-shaped part of the ear, has become increasingly popular as a source for secondary nasal reconstruction.

Large series exist too. In 2026, Kim and Kim reported 1,710 primary rhinoplasties in which conchal cartilage was used for a tip-support strut combined with an absorbable plate. They reported a complication rate of 0.35% in patients with recorded follow-up. This was one team’s own retrospective review without a comparison group, so it describes their results with their technique, not a general rate.

Is ear cartilage used in primary rhinoplasty?

Sometimes. The ASPS says ear cartilage is occasionally used for grafts in rhinoplasty in general, not only in revisions, and the 1,710-patient primary series above used it for tip support. Septal cartilage is still described as the usual first choice, so ear cartilage tends to come up when the septum is not enough or a small, soft graft will do.

Is ear cartilage less likely to be absorbed?

You may read that ear cartilage is less likely to be absorbed than rib or septal cartilage. The published evidence is mixed on this point.

A 2025 retrospective study in Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, Li and colleagues, followed 27 patients who had nasal tip surgery with either ear cartilage as a cap graft or rib cartilage as a septal extension and cap graft. They measured the nose with 3D photography before and after surgery, and again at a long-term check an average of 453 days later. The ear cartilage group showed more resorption in tip height and tip volume than the rib group. The authors concluded that both gave adequate short-term support, and that rib cartilage gave better long-term stability.

The study is small, from one center, and compares different graft designs, so it cannot settle the question. It does show why a blanket statement either way is unreliable. The right choice depends on what the graft has to do and where it goes.

What does taking cartilage from the ear involve?

The surgeon removes a piece of cartilage from the ear and closes the site, and Mundra and colleagues describe a bolster (pressure) dressing over the conchal harvest area. They list the donor-site problems that can occur as hematoma (a collection of blood), scarring and wound-healing complications. They also report one rare case of a full-thickness defect in the conchal bowl after harvesting, in a patient first seen two months later with the bolster still in place, which was repaired with flaps. That is a single case report, not a typical outcome.

The British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons also says that if cartilage, bone or skin is taken from another part of the body, it leaves a scar that may be noticeable. Ask where the incision will be and how the ear should look afterward.

Who might need ear cartilage?

Decisions like this are individual. Situations where graft material is discussed include a revision when the septum has been used, a nose that needs strong tip support, or a nose where a small, soft graft is enough. Your surgeon examines your nose, judges how much and what kind of cartilage is needed, and may keep options open until the operation. Our guides to revision rhinoplasty, rib cartilage and donor cartilage explain the alternatives. In common practice in Turkey, donor (bank) cartilage is rarely used, and most surgeons prefer the patient’s own cartilage (editorial note, October 2026).

What should you ask your surgeon?

  • Where do you plan to take cartilage from, and what is the back-up if it is not enough?
  • Why ear and not the septum, a donor graft or rib?
  • Where will the incision be, and how will my ear look and feel afterward?
  • What donor-site problems have you seen in your own patients?
  • How do you manage the risk that a graft slowly shrinks?
  • Is an implant an option, and what are the trade-offs? (See silicone implants in revision surgery.)
  • How would a problem in the nose after revision be handled? (For one example, see columellar necrosis after revision rhinoplasty.)

Sources

All pages were opened and checked on 10 October 2026.