Rhinoplasty or surgery for the nose can have two purposes, (1) functional purposes or to correct physiological complications that disrupt one’s ability for breathing properly, and (2) cosmetic purposes or to refine one’s nose shape for enhanced aesthetics. No matter what type of procedure you are planning to undergo, having rhinoplasty surgery can enhance your quality of life. It’s a smart move to know and understand the type of surgery and everything about it before making the final decision.
Generally, rhinoplasty surgeries can be an open or closed procedure. An open rhinoplasty procedure will involve making incisions on the outside of the nose. This type of procedure is ideal for cases with severe damage or when the area that is needed to be treated is on the nasal cavity. On the other hand, the closed rhinoplasty procedure will only involve incisions within the nose. This type of procedure minimizes visible scarring.
Functional Rhinoplasty Procedures
These types of procedures aim to correct physical abnormalities that might be caused by congenital defects or accidents that obstruct proper breathing which also affect a person’s quality of life. Even if rhinoplasty cost can be high, these procedures are often necessary. The nose is located at the center of the face so therefore having a fractured one can affect one’s confidence.
- Correcting a Deviated Septum
A deviated septum can block airflow and will eventually damage the soft tissues in the nose. It happens when the septum shifts to one side of the nasal cavity, therefore, creating one passageway for air instead of two. Thus, creating an S-shape or C-shape septum.
For this condition, the surgeon will reshape the upper or lower portions of the septum depending on where it deviated. The goal is to re-create two equal passageways for airflow.
- Correcting Enlarged Turbinates
Turbinates that has become swollen due to allergies or other irritants must be corrected as it obstructs the passageway for breathing. Enlarged turbinates can also be a result of a deviated septum, a turbinate can become constricted because a deviated septum can corner it one side. To compensate, the turbinate on the opposite side tends to become enlarged.
To properly correct this condition, a surgeon will fraction a portion of the turbinates outward and away from the septum to create larger passageways that will improve breathing. Some surgeon will consider removing tissues to reduce the size of turbinates, this technique is very painful and may cause atrophic rhinitis in the future.
- Removing Nasal Polyps
Similar to enlarged turbinates, nasal polyps are results of allergies and other irritation. Nasal polyps are benign growths that develop in the passageways and appears as soft, jelly-like bulbs.
The surgeon will use a snare instrument to carefully remove them from the nostrils. However, nasal polyps usually grow back and patients with this condition are advised to take allergy medication even after the procedure.
- Correcting Nasal Fractures
Any kind of nasal fracture can result in obstructed breathing and a crooked or misshapen nose which can greatly affect a person’s quality of life. Fractures can occur along the bony parts of the nose, more commonly known as the “bony pyramid”. It is the part of the nose that protrudes from the face. There are many kinds of nasal fractures that will require different types of osteotomy or the practice of rejoining and resetting bones.
Some of the types of nasal fractures are the following: Greenstick fractures which often happens to children; fracture that cause saddle deformity that results to facial trauma; comminuted fracture where the bone is broken into two pieces; and trauma to the maxillae or Le Fort fractures which can cause serious and permanent damage to the brain and palate.
Cosmetic Rhinoplasty Procedures
As the name suggests, these types of procedures are done for cosmetic purposes – the goal is to improve the appearance of the nose. Although a significant portion of rhinoplasty surgeries are performed for functional purposes, rhinoplasty surgeries are more popularly done for cosmetic reasons.
There are many more different types of rhinoplasty surgeries done for cosmetic purposes, all with the purpose of enhancing the shape of the nose and make it a flattering complement to the rest of the face. These surgeries often involve altering any or all of the different vaults in the nose: the upper vault which is the bony vault, the middle vault, and the lower vault. Among the different cosmetic alterations that may be done on the nose are straightening a crooked nose, correcting the radix (upper bony part), projection adjustment, tip rotation and reduction, nasolabial angle adjustment, alar adjustment, and width reduction.
