| FAQ : Criteria |
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Who is a candidate for Rhinoplasty? |
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Some of the indications that you may be a good candidate for rhinoplasty are
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- Your nose appears too large for your face.
- There is a bump on the
nasal bridge when viewed in profile.
- Your nose seems too wide when viewed
from the front.
- The nasal tip droops or plunges.
- The tip is thickened
or enlarged.
- Your nostrils are excessively flared.
- Your nose is
off-center or crooked.
- Previous injury has made your nose asymmetrical. |
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| FAQ : Surgical
Procedure |
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What is Rhinoplasty? |
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Rhinoplasty is one of the most common and frequently
performed cosmetic procedures performed. Surgery of the nose is performed to
reconstruct the shape of the nose from either the frontal view or the profile.
Reasons for this surgery can include removal of bumps, reducing the size,
correcting the angle or reconstructing the nose following a traumatic injury.
The procedure can also help alleviate nasal obstructions. Rhinoplasty is usually
not performed on patients until the mid-teen years when the growth cycle is
complete. |
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Where your surgery will be performed? |
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Rhinoplasty may be performed in a surgeon's
office-based facility, an outpatient surgery center, or a hospital. It's usually
done on an outpatient basis, for cost containment and convenience. Complex
procedures may require a short inpatient stay. |
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Where are the incisions? |
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Most of the incisions are hidden within the nostrils or
inside the upper lip. Sometimes tiny puncture wounds are made through the skin
itself. When we trim the nasal ala, a skin incision is made. It is placed so
that the scar is camouflaged by the groove where the "wing" of the nostril meets
the cheek. An incision may be made across the columella. |
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What should I expect following the
procedure? |
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After the procedure is complete a small splint is
applied to the nose as well as some packing may be placed in the nares to help
control bleeding. The packing is usually removed within a day or two. Even after
the packing is removed you may experience some stuffiness especially if the
procedure involved the nasal septum. The doctor will advise you on how long you
must wait until you are able to blow your nose. Any pain you experience will be
mild to moderate and can be controlled by oral medications. There will be some
swelling and bruising around the eyes and nose. The bruising around the eyes
should begin to disappear within a few days but it may take two to three weeks
for all the discoloration to go away. The swelling will begin to go down after a
few weeks also, but it may take up to three or four months for minor sweling to
go completely away. Swelling can reduced by keeping your head elevated and
possibly applying cold packs to the swollen areas. Although most people are up
and around the day following the surgery, you must exercise great caution and
protect you nose from any injury. Strenuous exercise should be avoided for
several weeks along with any other activities that may cause a rise in your
blood pressure. If you wear glasses it is advised that you adjust them so they
do not sit on the healing areas of the nose. If you have contacts, it is advised
that you wear them during your healing process. |
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| FAQ : Result |
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What can I expect postoperatively? |
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After surgery the patient will have a stuffy,
swollen nose and puffy eyes. Usually there will be black and blue bruising of
the face, eyes and nose. A splint will be taped on the nose for about five days.
If surgery is done for airway obstruction, packs may be placed in the nostrils.
The majority of the swelling will disappear in one week and the discoloration in
two weeks, after which time the patient appears quite presentable. There is
always a small amount of residual swelling, which gradually subsides over a
period of several months. Healing is not considered complete for at least six
months, and small changes can take place even after this period of time.
Usually, it takes several months for the nasal bones to heal. Before they heal,
they have a tendency to drift apart or to drift to one side or the other. We
push these drifting bones back into their correct position at the time of your
clinic visits. We will instruct you to do the same, using finger pressure. |
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What will my nose look like after surgery? |
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In general, rhinoplasty, cosmetic nose
surgery, is designed to reduce excess cartilage and bone in the nose, removing
irregularities and bumps to give a straightened, smooth and, usually, smaller
appearance. Adding tissue to enhance certain features of the nose can also
occur. The overall trend in modern rhinoplasty is away from over-reduction of
tissue which can reduce the ability to breath through the nose and towards
individualized treatment of each segment of the nose to give a balanced and
refined look without compromising function. |
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I have trouble breathing through my nose and have
terrible sinus problems. Will my insurance policy pay for rhinoplasty? |
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The condition described is usually associated with a
deviated septum or a bent internal framework of the nose. Most of the time this
results from trauma such as a broken nose but many patients with this condition
cannot recall an episode where this might have occurred. The condition described
in this question however, could also result from allergies or the two conditions
can exist simultaneously. Careful examination is needed before surgery to
separate the two conditions. While individual insurance policies can vary, in
general, functional surgery to improve breathing is considered a covered benefit
in many group policies. If additional correction of a cosmetic deformity of the
nose is done at the same time the cost of this part of the procedure is usually
not covered by insurance. |
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Is there a lot of bruising afterwards and how long
will it last? |
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This depends again on how complex the
procedure is, but in general most patients experience five to seven days of
purple discoloration and swelling around the eyes and upper cheeks. The nose
itself will be swollen for around ten to fourteen days or longer, but subtle
resolution of the swelling at the tip of the nose can take many months after
surgery to go away. |
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| FAQ : Risk and
Complication |
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Will my nose grow after surgery? |
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In general, our noses tend to elongate as we enter the
middle years of our life and drooping of the tip of the nose can occur in the
later years as elasticity disappears from the body. While undergoing a cosmetic
rhinoplasty as a teenager or young adult will not prevent the effects of aging
on the nose, the final shape that results from this surgery is expected to last
a lifetime and regrowth of bumps and deformities corrected by the operation is a
rare occurrence. |
