Before <before surgery> Before <before surgery> Before <before surgery> After <after surgery> After <after surgery> After <after surgery> After <after surgery> I finally had the rhinoplasty I had been thinking about for 6-7 years because I was worried about side effects. I got a lot of information from this community, so I'm writing my own review too! I have quite severe facial asymmetry, a deviated nose, and rhinitis, and I also had a hump. In the past, I had received a semi-permanent filler called ArteFill in the columella area (it's called cat filler, and if you're considering it, absolutely do not get it. If you're considering rhinoplasty, I also strongly do not recommend other filler procedures or thread insertion procedures). So even though it was my first surgery, it was a very difficult case.
Because of that, I looked into hospitals even more carefully. After searching hard through various apps, websites, and searches, I received consultations at four places and then booked surgery. When first deciding which hospitals to consult, I mainly looked through reviews and hospital recommendations posted on apps or other cafes to filter out hospitals I would not consult at (when you read reviews or hospital-recommendation comments, there are really a lot of brokers.....). I also used selfie reviews showing the whole face and model reviews that seemed strongly promotional only as references for filtering hospitals out. Also, I did not even consider large hospitals where substitute surgery could be possible, or places that were not rhinoplasty-specialized hospitals.
And since I decided on surgery because I wanted to improve the shortcomings of my nose compared with before, even if the aesthetic aspect might be somewhat lacking, I went to consultations for non-implant surgery without silicone implants in order to minimize side effects. When you receive consultations at several hospitals, you start to get a general picture of what condition your nose is in and what surgical method should be used. My nose condition could be summarized as follows.
- A deviated nose bent to the side (/), with a hump, and the nasal bone area was not wide but rather thin (They said it was a case where osteotomy had to be decided carefully so the nasal bone area would not become too thin.) - My septum was on the long side, and the cartilage was not soft, so even before rhinoplasty I could not really make a pig nose (They said these are characteristics of a long nose and arrow nose.) - One nostril was large and the asymmetry was severe; also, because I had a dragon nose, the nostrils were lifted upward (I had always only paid attention to the deviated nose and hump, so before consultations I had no idea my nostril sizes were uneven.) - The nasal tip drooped, making my midface look longer - My deviated septum was really, really severe, one inferior turbinate was very swollen, and there were traces of sinusitis
After I had gained somewhat objective information about my nose like this, I had surgery at Revens ENT. The surgery I received was:
Closed removal of the hump, left-side osteotomy to correct the deviated nose, cartilage repositioning + cartilage binding + septal cartilage graft to raise the nasal tip, and surgery for deviated septum + inferior turbinate + nasal valve to improve rhinitis.
Usually, when the nose is opened, the chance of a side effect where the nasal tip droops becomes higher, so septal extension is often performed together. But I did not want my nasal tip to be fixed or the nasal structure to be damaged a lot, so I chose a hospital specializing in closed rhinoplasty (they said closed surgery does not cut the columellar artery, so the nasal tip does not droop easily). Also, for a clearer design and communication, before surgery I showed the director photos of my nose that I had edited in Photoshop. As a result, the expected outcomes from this surgery were as follows.
- Hump removal, partial improvement of the deviated nose, and because it is non-implant surgery, the nasal bridge may become slightly uneven - As the nasal tip is raised, a semi-ski-slope to straight-with-slight-curve line would be created - To correct the deviated nose, the nasal tip would be brought toward the center, which could make nostril asymmetry appear more noticeable - Improvement of the nasolabial angle compared with before - Improvement of rhinitis
The surgery was performed under local anesthesia and took about two and a half hours, so I could receive it with real peace of mind without worrying about substitute surgery or the surgical details being changed. Since I was awake during surgery, the director also showed me the shape of my nose midway through the surgery. (They said this is possible only when operating with a closed approach.) And because the director performs surgery 3-4 times a week and only on one person per day, there was no need to worry about the director's condition. After surgery, it is easy to worry about all kinds of small things, but for the first week after surgery, the director personally checked my progress, disinfected, treated, and explained precautions every day, so from a patient's standpoint I could really feel at ease. Also, because it was done with a closed approach, there is no columella scar, and even though the surgery was complex, when the splint was removed after a week, there was very little swelling.
It has now been about 3 months since the surgery. Unless I say it first, no one can tell I had surgery because it looks so natural, and before I always had a dry and stuffy throat from mouth breathing, but now breathing has become really comfortable.
It was a surgery I decided on after thinking about it and researching it for a very long time, preparing as diligently as if I had been assigned an important project at work. Even if it is cosmetic surgery, it is still a really major surgery in life, so I hope you will be careful, check every single thing thoroughly, and then have surgery. Before surgery, take good photos of the surgical area from every angle, and make sure you properly understand the surgical details and the expected results from the surgery before receiving it. I made a checklist, organized consultation details in Excel, decided on the hospital, and booked surgery with the mindset that this would be my first and last surgery. Looking at many side-effect reviews and reviews where the technique or implant changed during surgery made me realize that being strict and meticulous about these things is never excessive. I hope this review helps those who are considering surgery like I was!
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