All our Ear Buddies™ kits come with full instructions, also set out here below. 

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Before you begin

• Please read all these instructions before you start. Having a young baby is stressful, and we don’t want Ear Buddies™ products to make things worse rather than better. Say to yourself that you are going to make a really good job of this. Don’t rush. If necessary, read one day and fit the next.

• To fit the splints properly first time, the MOST important thing is to degrease the ears. However clean your baby’s ears are, there will be a layer of dead skin and grease on them, sometimes from the womb, which will stop the tapes from sticking as well as they could. The older the baby, the more important this preparation is.  Support your baby in the bath, put some neat baby shampoo on the ears and rub it in, paying particular attention to the folds and creases. Let baby play for about 30 minutes (you might want to get into the bath too, as this is a long time to hold a baby), gently rubbing any skin debris from the ears with your fingers from time to time, then rinse off and dry the ears, rubbing gently with a clean soft towel. Let your baby’s ears dry for AT LEAST 90 minutes and you are ready to fit the splints.

• The older your baby is the more difficult is splintage. It IS fiddly, but if you persevere you CAN make a difference to how the ears look.

• The kits are designed for newborns – there is enough tape to ensure that both ears can be corrected and the tapes changed once (although only a single application will usually suffice in a newborn).

• If your baby is older than this, particularly if it is three months of age or more, it is very likely that the tapes will start to work loose every 2-3 weeks or so, and you will have to change the loose parts.  By the time you do this, the ear will have already started to assume a better shape, and the groove in which the splint sits will be better defined.  You will have the confidence of knowing that things are going well and it is worthwhile.

• The tapes WILL get grubby and look generally dog-eared the longer they stay on. It is best not to get them wet in the bath as the area between the back of the ear and the side of the head will not dry out quickly, and the skin there can become inflamed. Give baby a really good bath and hair wash only when you are about to change the tapes, and change the tapes only when they are no longer doing their job, and not simply because they look grubby. You can change the long tape only, if the short tapes adhering well. We recommend leaving the part which is adhering well in situ, trimming the non-adherent part, and then attaching a new tape over the top. This can allow good fixation for another few weeks, after which the whole lot can be soaked off in the bath.  In newborns, in particular, the tapes stick so well that they can be difficult to remove, and in these cases, we recommend adhesive remover wipes.

• The pack comes with the correct combination of short and long tapes for a newborn.  In older babies we would recommend using Superwide tapes to fix the splinted ears to the side of the head (instead of the long tapes, or after you have used the ones supplied).  You might find it helpful to put an extra strip of this tape at the top of the ear to obliterate the groove between the ear and the side of the head for a few days to discourage any tugging during, for example, teething. Each Superwide pack contains 8 strips 1” x 5”, and is the most cost efficient way of buying the tape - you can cut the pieces crossways to make the short strips too, if you wish.

• However well-meaning, advice to rip off the tape as one would a plaster in an adult should be disregarded around the delicate skin of the ear, particularly when the baby has hair.  You can soak the tapes off in the bath, using a smear of baby shampoo on each strip.  Alternatively, you can buy individually packed adhesive remover wipes.

• Never be tempted simply to stick back the ear without the splint in position.  The ear will not be corrected, and it is highly likely that the rim will become permanently notched or flattened.

• The only purpose of the headgear supplied is to hide the splints from prying eyes if you are feeling a little sensitive about having fitted Ear Buddies™ splints to your baby’s ears. Merely wearing headgear or a hat without splintage WILL NOT correct a misshapen ear. Think of the splints in the same way that you think of braces on teeth - now an acceptable part of growing up.

• Any headwear can contribute to overheating - so always check that baby is not too warmly dressed for the surroundings, especially at night.

Tip

Try fitting the splint whilst your baby is sleeping.

How to fit Ear Buddies™ splints to your baby's ears

You will need:

• Your Ear Buddies™ kit
• A pair of scissors
• Your baby, with the problem ear(s) freshly bathed and dry
• A little dexterity and some patience, particularly if your baby is more than a week old

About two-thirds of ears which end up prominent are evident at birth. In the remainder, prominence does not develop until about three months of age. Ear Buddies™ splints will work for these ears too, but remember that the older the baby is when you first fit the splint, the longer it must remain in place to be successful.

Recommended splintage times:

The splints must be worn for as much of the day as possible, and preferably 24 hours a day. They are made to be comfy, and your baby should be able to sleep on a splinted ear untroubled. Remember that a little persistence now might spare your child embarrassment, teasing or even an operation in the future.

How the splints work

The splints are fitted into the gully of the ear and fixed by narrow strips of tape, and then the whole ear is taped to the side of the head using a broad tape strip. The pressure of the splint on the ear cartilage resets its tendency to make the ears stick out whilst maintaining the proper contours of the rest of the ear. You may be tempted simply to stick baby’s ear to the side of the head without first fitting the splint. This can distort the shape of the ear and is actively discouraged.

Your pack contains two splints - one for each ear - there is no need to fit a splint to both ears if only one is misshapen or sticks out. Although the splints are formed with a curve to fit most babies’ ears, they are bendable in all directions, and you can alter the curve to fit more snugly, if necessary.

To fit the splint

Open the pack of shorter, thinner adhesive strips. Take a splint and apply it to the gully (1) inside the rim (2) of the problem ear starting at the cul-de-sac (3), and working backwards.

Cut the short tapes in half along the card perforation. Remove one strip from its backing. Starting from the back of the ear at the middle of its curve (position 1), stick it down over the skin and the splint so that the rim of the ear is rolled over the splint. Affix three more pieces of tape in positions 2, 3 and 4.

Open the pack containing the broader, longer adhesive strips. Use one to stick the splinted ear to the side of the head. If your baby has a full head of hair, simply shave a small area around the ear. If the splint is correctly fitted, the ear should now have a greatly improved shape and position.

For ears without a gully (1), rim or helix (2) or antihelix (4)

Particularly common in prominent ears:

Place the splint a little way in from the edge of the ear - once the edge is rolled around the splint (figure B), a proper rim will be reformed. More importantly, once the splint is in position, and the ear taped back against the side of the head, the splint will reform the antihelix.

For ears with an abnormal bulge or kink within the gully (Stahl's bar):

Take special care to ensure that the splint is firmly fixed over the bulge in order that the abnormality is ‘pressed out’.

Length of splintage

Ideally the splints should be worn at all times, 24 hours a day, for the recommended splintage times. If the baby has a special occasion, however, it will not matter if you remove the splint for a few hours. The splintage times are guidelines only. Remember it is better to err on the side of lengthy splintage rather than to remove the splint too early and have the ear problem recur.

If you do find that the original problem returns after you have removed the splint, simply refit it for a couple more weeks.

Adhesive strips

For best results, the adhesive strips should be applied to clean, dry skin which is free of natural skin oils - after baby’s bath is usually a good time. Please do not apply the strips under tension or stretched. The delicate skin may shear or blister if excessive tension is applied. Inspect your baby’s ears each day to make sure that they are not becoming chafed or red. Because very young babies sweat very little, the tape tends to stick better and for longer than in adults, and if your baby is newborn, you may not need to change the tape at all. You can buy fresh supplies of tape from the Ear Buddies™ range of products on the website.

TO PREVENT YOUR BABY ACCIDENTALLY SWALLOWING THE SPLINT, IT IS VITAL THAT YOU ENSURE THAT IT IS FIRMLY TAPED IN POSITION.

WARNING

Ear Buddies™ products contain medical grade plastics, inert metals and hypoallergenic adhesive tape which should not harm your baby’s delicate skin. The device should not be used if the skin of the baby’s ear is broken. Should any evidence of sensitivity develop, you should stop using the product immediately and consult your doctor. The device is strictly for external use only, and no attempt should be made to insert the device into the ear canal, nor internally elsewhere.

Ear Buddies™ splints will improve the majority of simple problems of shape, contour and position of the external ear. However, they cannot replace missing tissue or guarantee success in all cases.