A nose surgery will correct a crooked nose, a bump, a droopy tip and much more. The best part? You won’t even feel the pain.
Rhinoplasty is today one of the most popular plastic surgery procedures. Its origins can be traced many centuries back, during 600 BC, when the Indian doctor Sushruta performed the first nose surgeries. However, rhinoplasty became widely known in Italy during Renaissance by Gaspare Tagliocozzi (1545-1599). Later, in the 80s and 90s, faces had the same nose, a fact that tells us there was just one technique. Today, an experienced plastic surgeon offers a natural looking nasal correction taking into account that the nose is in total balance with all the other facial features. After all, no one wants to have a visible nose job.
A modern plastic surgeon keeps in mind three mottoes referring to a demanding rhinoplasty:
- “With the open approach, we can see everything”.
- “With grafts, we correct everything”.
- “With internal sutures, we modify everything”.
Even though until the end of the 1970s all nose jobs were done with incisions inside the nose (closed rhinoplasty), in recent times there are two main techniques performed by plastic surgeons.
Kosmesis’ Plastic surgeons own more than 20 years of experience in Aesthetic Plastic Surgery and are the most appropriate to achieve an excellent aesthetic result. Book your appointment now!
The techniques
The open rhinoplasty procedure
Most plastic surgeons opt for this technique. Open rhinoplasty procedure starts with an incision in the columella in the shape of an inverted V. The skin of the nose is lifted, thus exposing the bone and cartilage of the nasal cavity. The plastic surgeon is able to see the whole anatomy of the nose during the operation.
The advantages
- The open rhinoplasty provides the doctor with a better exposure of the anatomy of the nose
- A “millimeter-accuracy” reshaping of the nose and the precise placement of grafts (if necessary)
- The incision outside the nose will disappear within 1-3 months
The closed rhinoplasty procedure
With this particular technique, incisions are hidden inside the nostrils. Doctors mainly opt for it in simple cases, such as the removal of the nasal hump and the lift of the tip. The drawback of a closed rhinoplasty approach is that the incisions are internal and the plastic surgeon cannot see the bones and the cartilage. This is why many plastic surgeons resort to what we call “Delivery technique”.
The Delivery technique
The plastic surgeon makes two incisions inside the nose so that both the bone and the cartilage of the lower part of the nose are exposed. We resort to the Delivery technique mainly to correct or lift the nose tip.
Nose tip surgery (Tip rhinoplasty)
The latest trend in Asia is called “Eiffel tower nose”. The famous French nose –which is slender and sloping- has been synonymous with beauty for decades. Millions of women and men have asked their plastic surgeons to correct the tip of their nose in order to achieve an elegant French nose. The nose tip correction modifies the volume and the nasal tip angles. This surgical procedure may sound simple but it often turns out to be very demanding.
Which are the most common problems of the nose tip?
Bulbous tip
Boxy tip
Droopy tip
The procedure
The nose tip, the lower third of the nose, has a particularly complex anatomical structure and we can achieve a total makeover even by slightly altering it. The tip rhinoplasty is one of the most popular nose surgeries. The procedure is done either with closed or open rhinoplasty. However, the ideal method is the Delivery technique or the open rhinoplasty approach, as the tip rhinoplasty is very demanding.
Augmentation rhinoplasty
In some cases we need to use grafts (augmentation rhinoplasty). With this procedure, we correct both the nose tip and the nasal bridge. This technique is very demanding and therefore it is performed with the open rhinoplasty approach. Apart from the grafts, we often use stitches inside the nose. The grafts we use may be autologous or artificial. Most plastic surgeons opt for autologous grafts because they don’t develop any problems. These grafts are:
-Cartilage taken from the septum, ear or rib
-Fascia from the temporal fascia
Nasal septum deviation – Septorhinoplasty
This scientific term describes the crooked septum affecting millions of people. At least 80% of the population has a deviated septum resulting in problems like breathing or sleeping difficulties and headaches. In those cases, the best treatment is the surgical procedure. During the procedure, which is performed under general anesthesia, the plastic surgeon also corrects the turbinates (conchae) which are small bones on the sides of the nose. The nasal septum deviation surgery (septorhinoplasty) lasts for almost 1 hour.
When should a patient undergo septorhinoplasty:
- In case where the septum is very crooked and causes problems such as chronic nasal congestion, shortness of breath, headaches, snoring, nasal bleeding, noisy breathing, sleep apnea
- When the appearance of the deviated nose causes psychological problems to the patient
- When the patient is undergoing rhinoplasty, they should simultaneously proceed to the correction of the septum
The standard rhinoplasty
The most common reasons why people resort to rhinoplasty are their nasal hump and a large nose tip. Standard rhinoplasty is performed under general anesthesia with the closed method and the procedure lasts for almost 20′-30′.
Who are the ideal candidates for rhinoplasty and septum correction?
Patients with:
-Dorsal nose hump
-Crooked nose
-Large nose
-Large/droopy etc. nose tip
-Shortness of breath
-Injury
-Cleft lip or cleft palate
Post operational downtime
Rhinoplasty is painless no matter the kind of procedure the plastic surgeon chooses to proceed with. After the surgery, the doctor places a splint on the nose and a tampon inside of it. He also places a small piece of gauze in the nostrils to prevent any bleeding. The splint is removed in 5 days, while in the case of the open rhinoplasty, sutures are also removed in 5 days. The tampon is removed within 24 hours. The patient should take antibiotics for 5 days and wash the nose with saline, as this will speed recovery. When showering, do not bend! Also keep in mind that there will be bruising and swelling in the areas of the nose and the eyes, which will disappear after two weeks. Return to work should be allowed after 8-14 days. The results of the nose surgery will be visible within a month, while the nose will take its final shape within 6 months to 1 year.
Possible complications
Complications of rhinoplasty are extremely rare and they can include:
Bleeding, inflammation, nasal airway alterations (such as breathing difficulty), septal perforation (hole in the nasal septum), saddle nose, V Deformity, tip deformities or fracture of the cribriform plate.
Book your appointment with the experienced and renowned doctors of Kosmesis and learn how to achieve the perfect result for your face.
