What is gauging?
Gauging is the slang word for stretching of a body piercing, such with the ear lobe or tongue piercing. If the skin is stretched slow enough then there is no rupture, however once you go beyond half of an inch, the body isn't able to then close that opening and you are left with a permanent hole.
Often times, people would like to acquire a job that will not hire them becasue of the appearence of this permanent hole in one ear or nose.
Your earlobes, which are made of skin and fatty tissue, are quite strong and flexible but not as hardy as the rest of your cartilage-based ear structure. The good news is that Dr. Michael K. Kim can repair these tears, in-office under local anesthesia. The excess skin must besurgically removed and then restructured. It's a simple procedure, short downtime, takes around a half hour and patients are very happy with the results.
Although these procedures are usually relatively easy and painless, insurance typically doesn’t cover them. Costs normally in the range of $500-$1000 to fix.