At last, I had my nose removal done! I got a huge amount of help from this community too, and there aren’t many reviews about removal after autologous rib cartilage, so I’m writing a photo review. The reason I chose this clinic is explained in detail in another post I wrote, so please refer to that. Still, I’ll write some basic information.
I had my nose done twice over 10 years ago. This January, I had a third surgery with autologous rib cartilage. I wanted to go back to my naturally short nose, but every clinic I consulted told me that if I removed it, my nose would collapse, so they said I should reinforce it with autologous rib cartilage. I went along with that and it turned out badly
Reasons the third surgery went wrong: my nose became even longer + foreign-body sensation and pressure from the autologous rib cartilage + a witch-like nose + when I smiled, the tip of my nose and philtrum got pulled + a horizontal line appeared across my philtrum when smiling Before surgery, they acted like they would handle aftercare well, but when I raised the issue, they said, “In my opinion it looks fine,” and refused full removal, saying if they removed it I’d get contracture and the nose would collapse. They also said the philtrum crease was barely visible, so I should just live with it....
So I looked for a clinic that specializes in removal. My conditions were: 1. full removal of the autologous rib cartilage 2. restoration of my naturally short nose 3. tying the cartilage to shape the tip 4. responsibility and aftercare if problems arise 5. if there is a hollow, use ear cartilage (not dermis, not Megaderm)
The clinic I chose was ㅇㄱㅈㅇㅇㅂ. Apgujeong ㅇㅇㅂ, the clinic with six syllables, the six-syllable clinic. One of the big-name long-named clinics in Apgujeong, not one of the usual top three. The name is long, so people used all kinds of roundabout ways, which made it hard to find through normal search. I dug through the removal forum posts from last year too, watched more than 10 photo reviews, and there were even more text reviews. I looked at several cases like mine, including a witch-like nose that had become longer and was restored shorter, plus several pre-removal reviews, then had two consultations and decided on the clinic.
The director gave me confidence that even if all the autologous rib cartilage was removed, my nose would not collapse. And because this would be my fourth surgery, I was in a pretty resigned state.. I told the director that even if my nostrils were asymmetrical or my nose was a little uneven, that was okay, and that I would give up a lot and just wanted my naturally short nose back. But the director asked why I was giving up, said he would make it pretty, and told me not to worry.. That was reassuring
Cost: in the mid-5 million won range (this removal made it my fourth nose surgery) No splint, no nasal packing. The cartilage was tied with non-absorbable thread. Cartilage repositioning. Everything was removed from inside the nose, not just silicone. (No autologous rib cartilage, no ear cartilage, no septal cartilage.)
Surgery time: 1 hour. I had sedation anesthesia for 10 minutes, then woke up and received local anesthesia for 50 minutes. I’m very timid, so I was extremely worried. I was so scared that I cried while getting sedation anesthesia But the 50 minutes while awake felt incredibly short, like only 10 minutes. The director explained why: even if you wake up from sedation anesthesia, it’s like drinking alcohol, with gaps in memory here and there, so it feels short.
The surprising thing about having surgery while awake was this. I could tell the director was doing something in front of me, but I didn’t feel his hands touching my nose or manipulating anything at all; I felt nothing and it didn’t hurt at all; even someone as timid as me could get surgery comfortably, so don’t be scared and just do it! It really wasn’t a big deal
The director narrated the procedure in real time, and if there was anything to choose, he asked for consent or discussed it with me. For example, it turned out that a cat-surgery incision had somehow been made above my philtrum?! The director asked whether to remove it, and I said yes, but then he said the septal piece he had harvested seemed to be supporting the left and right sides of my original septum from below, so for safety, what about leaving it there. I agreed and left it in.
In situations like that, I think having the surgery while awake was better. I was under anesthesia so it didn’t hurt, but apparently some people do feel pain when the lower base cartilage is being detached. Maybe 1 out of 3 people? If you happen to be that one, they said even more anesthesia won’t help, so you just have to endure it, which scared me; luckily I wasn’t that one.
Because I had scar tissue from the third surgery in the columella, they trimmed a bit of the columella and removed the scar too. Before surgery, they said if there was a hollow inside the nose, they could harvest ear cartilage and place it there (an extra 500,000 won), and because my eyes are protruding, if they removed the silicone I would just have eyes with no nose bridge between them so we decided to leave a 3 mm piece of silicone. The director also said that when lowering the tip, if the area under the silicone is higher than the tip, a step-off can form, so silicone replacement might be needed too (extra cost; I don’t know the amount). Luckily, instead of replacing it, they removed the silicone, cut the end, and put it back in. There was a hollow inside my nose, but because I have a fleshy nose, there was some extra tissue, so they filled it with my own tissue!! I was so grateful there was no extra charge If they were trying to make money, they could have added anything and charged more I really liked that it was such an ethical clinic.. During surgery, the nurse kept holding my hand the whole time, and I was so grateful.. Her hands were warm.
Ah, I stored the two pieces of removed autologous rib cartilage above my navel. (There was an extra charge.) Because the third-surgery clinic kept scaring me, saying that if I kept removing things, my nose would collapse and contracture would come, I put them in my body just in case. The director said there were quite a few other clients too who wanted their autologous rib cartilage stored in their body. Immediately after surgery, once the two thick layers of autologous rib cartilage came out, breathing became easier right away, and my heavy nose felt light My nose also became softer, and the witch-like nose became short again like my natural nose. I love it so much
When I had the third surgery, I was depressed because I could see my nose had become longer right on the day of surgery The tip is said to lower a little more than it is now. It’s still a fleshy nose, but because the cartilage was tied, it won’t spread out as much as my natural nose, which makes me happy. I only had a tiny bit of nosebleed for about half a day, and there wasn’t even one drop while sleeping.
Post-op day 2. No pain at all yesterday or today. My nose doesn’t hurt at all;; I don’t even feel anything;; The director said that if removal is done quickly within 1 hour, there won’t be much swelling and it won’t hurt, and that was true.
When I had the third surgery and autologous rib cartilage was inserted, my nose hurt so much for a whole week that I had to keep taking Tylenol and cried and couldn’t sleep;; Right now, there isn’t even bruising. My nose doesn’t hurt, but the upper navel area where the autologous rib cartilage was stored is a little sore.
Philtrum horizontal crease. This is still unresolved. Since it’s only day 2, the doctor said we should watch whether it disappears or not. At first, since I didn’t know about the cat-surgery incision, they said that by removing the autologous rib cartilage and returning the columella to its original state, and lowering the tip height, it might get better. Because I had made the nose too high, the skin may have been pulled and there may not have been enough skin, which could have caused the horizontal line on the philtrum. But if it still doesn’t go away, then the cat-surgery incision is the cause. The director said to watch it for 6 months first, and if the philtrum horizontal crease does not disappear, then at the 6-month mark we should make an incision inside the mouth and remove the cat-surgery incision too. No extra cost.
The third-surgery clinic said the philtrum crease wasn’t noticeable and told me to just live with it But the director at ㅇㅇㅂ felt responsible, and I felt so reassured and grateful. If I had not gone to the third-surgery clinic in January and instead had surgery at this clinic, it would have been better.. I complained to the director, asking why the clinic doesn’t do promotion and why it isn’t even on the app.. If they had promoted more, I would have known about it sooner and come earlier. The manager said they don’t do promotion and only rely on word of mouth for regular clients. Maybe that’s why, when I first went there, they asked how I found them even though they don’t advertise
Ah, the counseling manager is usually young in their 20s or 30s at plastic surgery clinics, but here the manager was an auntie-type middle-aged woman. It was the first time I’d seen a counseling office without a computer;; She’s unique and very warm-hearted, just like the reviews said She was really kind like an aunt. On the day of surgery, she prepared Pocari Sweat, vitamin water, and pumpkin juice for me On day 2, when I went to the clinic for disinfection, she also prepared soy milk. I was thankful.
I hope my review helps someone. Later, when it’s 2 weeks or 1 month and the swelling has gone down a bit, I’ll write another review!
There are many good clinics among the removal-specialist clinics, so I hope everyone thinks carefully and safely gets removed and has a successful surgery!