I thought I’d leave a review because there don’t seem to be many from cleft lip and palate patients, unlike the usual cases. For reference, I’m male~
1. Problems faced by cleft lip and palate patients
As you know, cleft lip and palate is a congenital malformation, and because the tissue that should normally be there is missing, it leaves a major defect in the nose and lip area.
Of course, in very mild cases there may not be much of a problem, but in most cases issues appear as you grow and gradually become more severe.
In unilateral cases, the growth rate of the two sides of the face differs, so the nose bends to one side. If you think of the nose as a house, it’s like one support column is missing, so the nose itself tilts to one side. It leans to one side like the Leaning Tower of Pisa;
In bilateral cases, symmetry is less of an issue, but the upper lip tends to be more problematic. With unilateral cases, at least one lip side is still intact, but with bilateral cases the entire upper lip can be thin, and so on.
For reference, I had a unilateral case, so my biggest complex was that my nose bent and tilted to one side. Especially in photos, it stood out much more than it did to the naked eye, so taking pictures was honestly awful;
2. Choosing a hospital
Honestly, since this isn’t ordinary cosmetic surgery but surgery for cleft lip and palate patients, the options didn’t seem that broad no matter how I looked around. In the end, I don’t think I spent that much time shopping around.
If I only write the initials, it’d be something like ㅅㅁㅇ, ㄱㄹ, ㅁㅅㅇ? For reference, each place specializes in different areas like the nose or lips, so I think it’d be best to use that as a reference depending on your condition.
And since cleft lip and palate is a congenital malformation, you should keep in mind that the surgery cost is bigger than you might expect.
Depending on the surgical area and method, you should be prepared for at least 7 million won, and in some cases up to twice that amount. After looking around, the price ranges seemed pretty much okay across the board.
3. Expectations for surgery
Since cleft lip and palate is a congenital malformation, no matter how perfectly the surgery is done, the traces can never disappear completely. Especially things like scars.
But the corrective effect on the nose or lips is very large, so I think it’s worth considering. In particular, doctors who specialize in cleft lip and palate usually do a lot of research and have a lot of experience, so I actually got the sense that they know better than the patient where and how to fix things.
At the consultation, it’s good to clearly state the parts you want, but also listen carefully to the doctor’s opinion. Especially since the surgery is so expensive, cost-effectiveness matters. In the case of scars, no matter what you do they can’t be perfectly resolved, so I don’t think it’s bad to compromise to some extent.
4. My surgery experience
It’s been one month since my surgery. Because my lip condition was relatively good (though there are of course some defects), I only had nose surgery.
I also had a deviated septum, so I combined it with functional surgery. Septal cartilage and ear cartilage were used for the nasal tip. Fortunately, my nose wasn’t in such severe condition that rib cartilage was needed, they said. Usually, rib cartilage is often used.
But when I got the surgery record for insurance reimbursement, I saw that Gore-Tex was also used in the nasal bridge. Actually, that wasn’t something I was told during the consultation... I heard that most surgery consent forms say other materials may be used if needed, but maybe I just didn’t read it properly ㅠㅠ
Still, in cleft lip and palate cases, the deformity is often severe, so I guess it can’t be helped. The tissue itself is also just so lacking.
For the nasal tip too, they say rib cartilage is often used if at all possible. I guess it’s different from normal cases.
In the end, it’s been one month since surgery, and I’m satisfied because the bent nose and tilted nose have been corrected a lot. As a bonus, the nostrils were also reduced... I ended up having more done than I expected;
I don’t have a proper before photo because I hate taking pictures so much... Still, now when I see myself in photos or in the mirror, it’s so nice that my nose is straight. I hope it stays that way for a long time without side effects. That’s the end of my review~
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