Did you know that there are many different kinds of nose surgery other than cosmetic rhinoplasty? While that’s certainly a very popular choice for many patients seeking an effective way to enhance their aesthetic appeal, there are other kinds of nose jobs, each with a different intended outcome.
Everyone’s body is unique, and therefore, all cosmetic surgeries—and all surgeries in general—will be slightly different. Let’s explore the different kinds of nose surgeries available and which purposes they serve.
Reduction Rhinoplasty
Reduction rhinoplasty does exactly what it says: it reduces the size of the nose. When patients opt for this type of surgery, they can choose to reduce the overall size of the nose or concentrate on specific areas that need to become smaller, like the tip, a hump or bump, and more. During this process, the resizing is often done by removing cartilage and/or bone from the nose to achieve the desired shape and size.
Reduction rhinoplasty begins with a consultation between you and a facial plastic surgeon. At this one-on-one meeting, you’ll have the chance to discuss your nose, what you don’t like about it, what you do like about it, and what you’d like it to change about it. If you’re talking a lot about how big your nose is, your surgeon will know to start including reduction rhinoplasty techniques into his surgical plan for you.
Augmentation Rhinoplasty
During this nose surgery treatment, the doctor performs bone or tissue grafting to build up the nasal tip and/or bridge. In many cases, he or she uses cartilage from other parts of the nose, usually the nasal septum.
However, if a patient does not have enough tissue in this area a number of materials are available to the rhinoplastic surgeon to augment the nose. These include, alloplasts (synthetic implants), allogenous materials (obtained from cadavers), or autologous implants (harvested from the patient’s own tissue).
Post-Traumatic Rhinoplasty
The nasal structure is a delicate part of the human anatomy, composed of small and intricate parts that are interconnected to create the shape of your nose. When the nose sustains an injury, any number of disastrous things can affect this carefully balanced structure, including broken bones, damaged cartilage, visible changes to the nose, internal deviations, asymmetries inside and out, and even trouble with breathing.
Bleeding is also a cause for concern, as blood clots can form around the nasal septum and block it off from regular blood flow. This will lead to the death of this cartilage partition between the airways, a condition medically known as septal hematoma. The bridge of the nose may collapse as a result, leading to a saddle nose or boxer nose deformity.
Reconstructive Rhinoplasty
Following surgery to remove cancer or occasionally following facial trauma, the nose may be left severely disfigured due to the lack of tissue that has been removed or lost. Reconstructive Rhinoplasty refers to surgery required to restore tissue that is absent or has been damaged beyond repair.
Surgical repair requires the use of grafts and flaps from various parts of the body to restore the missing component tissues.
Due to the complex nature of this procedure, patients may require multiple surgeries over a period of several months. Additionally, reconstructive rhinoplasty is a specialized procedure, and patients should look for surgeons who have extensive experience in this area.
Refinement Rhinoplasty
Complaints about the nasal tip rank among the top reasons for rhinoplasty surgery. Many patients are unhappy with the way their nose points up or down at the tip, how bulbous or round the tip appears, or how pointy the tip is. As the most protrusive area of the face, tip projection is extremely important to how a face may appear and is perceived.
Refinement rhinoplasty is a highly individualized procedure that specifically caters to each individual’s unique facial characteristics. Tip refinement can involve various tactics to fine-tune the nasal tip in a more pleasing fashion, one that complements the other features of the face. Your surgeon may add or remove cartilage and tissue in order to perfect the tip’s shape or direction.
Ethnic Rhinoplasty
A nasal surgery where the nose is surgically altered to create a symmetrical, aesthetically pleasing nose that suits the individual patient’s face without diminishing the patient’s ethnic characteristics.
Revision Rhinoplasty
A Rhinoplasty surgical procedure designed to repair both form and function of a nose that has previously been operated on. Many people have difficult breathing from their nose or are dissatisfied with the cosmetic appearance of their nose as a result of prior nasal surgery.
