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Nose Surgery (Rhinoplasty)


Rhinoplasty, or surgery to reshape the nose, is one of the most popular cosmetic surgical procedures. It can reduce or increase the size of your nose, change the shape of the tip or the bridge, change the appearance of the nostrils or the angle between your nose and your upper lip. Sometimes rhinoplasty is performed to improve breathing problems. Good rapport with the plastic surgeon because it is important for them to understand your wishes from the surgery.

The best candidates for rhinoplasty (nose surgery) are people who are physically healthy, psychologically stable, and realistic in their expectations.  It is preferable to wait until 14 or 15 for girls, and a bit later for boys to have this surgery performed. The type of surgery will depend on many factors including the shape of your nasal bones, size and shape of your face and your individual goals.





Nose Surgery details

Rhinoplasty can be performed under local or general anesthesia, depending on the extent of the procedure and your preference. With local anesthesia, you'll usually be lightly sedated, and your nose and the surrounding area will be numbed but you will be awake. Most rhinoplasty is performed from within the nose, though some surgery requires an open approach.

When the surgery is complete, a splint will be applied to help your nose maintain its new shape. Nasal packs or soft plastic splints also may be placed in your nostrils to stabilize the septum, the dividing wall between the air passages.

You'll notice swelling and bruising around your eyes in the first few days after surgery. This will resolve over one or two weeks. Occasionally mild swelling will last longer.

A little bleeding is common during the first few days following surgery, and you may continue to feel some stuffiness for several weeks. Mild headaches are not uncommon.

Most individuals are up and about within two days and able to return to school or sedentary work a week or so following surgery.

In the days following surgery, the swelling and bruising will obscure the surgical outcome. After a week or two your nose will begin to look better, though residual, mild swelling may limit you from seeing the final results for several months


Before nose plastic surgery, these rhinoplasty patients have large, slightly hanging noses, with a hump and an enlarged tip.




If your nostrils are too wide, the surgeon can remove small wedges of skin form their base, bringing them closer together.





Incisions are made inside the nostrils or at the base of the nose, providing access to the cartilage and bone, which can then be sculpted into shape.





The surgeon removes the hump using a chisel or a rasp, then brings the nasal bones together to form a narrower bridge. Cartilage is trimmed to reshape the tip of the nose.





Trimming the septum improves the angle between the nose and upper lip.





A splint made of tape and an overlay of plastic, metal, or plaster is applied to help the bone and cartilage of the nose maintain their new shape.





After nose surgery, the patient has a smaller nose, a straighter bridge, a well defined nasal tip, and an improved angle between the nose and upper lip.