2019.03.25 (Mon)
I had revision rhinoplasty for rhinitis, deviated septum, nasal valve reconstruction, columellar asymmetry, silicone implant for the nasal bridge, and autologous costal cartilage for the nasal tip.
Since I live in Incheon, I thought outpatient treatment would be difficult after harvesting costal cartilage, so I decided to be hospitalized and had the surgery. Even with the splint and gauze on in the hospital room, I could not shake the feeling that my nose looked somehow crooked. Also, the area where the costal cartilage was harvested hurt so much, and the scar was much bigger than what had initially been discussed. The suture line was not straight and neat either; should I say it was torn a lot upward and downward? When they did the dressing, I was completely shocked... Even now, the scar is extremely large.
And I told a staff member that my nose looked a bit deviated, but they said the stitches had not even been removed yet and it was early after surgery, so there could be swelling. Since this was not my first surgery either, I took that into account to some extent and waited for the swelling to go down.
After 7 days, while getting the stitches removed and preparing for discharge, I took selfies and looked in the mirror,
and I could clearly tell that my nose was crooked. (Columellar deviation, the center of the columella and philtrum not aligned, nasal tip deviation) Even then, the staff only talked about swelling...
After I was discharged and rested at home, around 2 weeks after surgery, I repeatedly heard from others that anyone could see my nose was crooked, that it was not centered with the philtrum and was deviated, so I became concerned, called the hospital, and went in.
2019.04.05 (Friday 2 PM) After first consulting with the manager, and then much later having a short consultation with Director Ahn Tae-hwan, he looked at my nose. At first he said it was probably due to swelling, but later he examined it more closely and said it was indeed deviated. He said that since it had been 2 weeks since surgery, immediate re-correction was possible. I believed that, even signed the consent form, and underwent re-correction. (At that time I felt so hopeless and could only cry.)
Of course, I thought that if I had re-correction, they would straighten the deviated nasal tip and make it upright and defined again. But it ended with only roughly adjusting the degree of columellar deviation, aligning it with the philtrum, and somehow slightly correcting the severely deviated nasal tip, so I felt truly empty and deprived.
To get to the point.
I will explain my current situation. I am entering the 5th month after surgery, but at my last visit, was it around 2 months post-op? The swelling has not changed from then to now. The inside of my nose is always dry, and even breathing is uncomfortable. Around the central part of the nasal bridge, should I call it the nasal valve area? Above the nasal bridge, air does not come in well. Some days, air does not come in well and I feel dizzy. The air that comes in feels too cold, and it does not feel like air circulates in and out at all. I inhale once and exhale once. My breathing feels unnatural.
Inside my nose, there is an aching and stinging feeling, and the nasal bridge and central area (the part where I do not know whether it is current swelling or what) always hurt around the facial area as if I had been hit. It is not painful enough that I scream if I press it with my hand or anything like that, but my nose, eyes, and the areas beside them always feel heavy and throb.
Even now, to my naked eye, I can see the columellar deviation. There is scar tissue inside my nose, and when I touch inside the nose toward the nasal tip, it feels bumpy and hard. I do not know whether this is scar tissue or something else, but it feels uncomfortable. Strangely, if I gently press my nostrils with two fingers to block them slightly and breathe, it feels like air comes in better than usual? The conclusion is that breathing is very uncomfortable.
Even though I usually rinse my nose 1-2 times a day, there is still dryness and a lot of foreign material inside my nose, and even when there are no boogers, it is hard to breathe through my nose. Also, I read that empty nose syndrome can occur as a sequela of turbinate resection. I suspect those symptoms too, but I have not received an accurate diagnosis yet, and I heard this can also develop several years after surgery, so I do feel unnecessarily anxious. But I sincerely hope there are no other sequelae.
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