Ear mold for congenital ear malformation: A randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND: Congenital auricular deformities (CAD) are prevalent worldwide. The objective of this study is to investigate the effectiveness and safety of ear molding for children with CAD at their early days. METHODS: One hundred and nighty children (under 3 days) with CAD will be included in the study. Participants will be randomly allocated to treatment or waiting list group (n = 95). The treatment group will receive ear molding within 3 days after birth for 2 weeks. The control group will receive usual care and receive the same ear molding at 6th week if spontaneously recover is not occur. Physician and parent assessment of improvement, parent's anxiety, depression, and quality of life and adverse events will be measured at baseline, 3rd and 6th week of initial treatment. The primary outcome recovery rate will be compared between groups using Chi square test. Secondary continuous outcomes will be compared using analysis of variance. DISCUSSION: This study is the first randomized controlled trial to examine the effectiveness, safety and cost-effectiveness of ear molding for CAD comparing with waiting list, to inform clinical decision of CAD treatments and relevant guideline development.