First nose surgery consultation review (long post)

This is my first time getting any kind of plastic surgery at all. I went to consultations at 2 places last week.. Researching online is hard too, but going around to consultations takes quite a lot of energy. ==> First, my situation before the in-person consultations My concerns: (1) Drooping nasal tip from the side (2) No defined tip-defining point from the front (because my nasal tip droops, in front-view photos the light only hits the bridge, and the tip looks blunt) My desired look: natural, want improvement of the drooping nasal tip I want to maintain my image (I do not prefer the nostrils being more visible from the front than with my original nose now, the philtrum suddenly looking longer, or the nose looking longer from the front than my original nose now and making the midface look longer) The method I had thought of: The first method I had in mind was whether maybe it could be done with just cartilage tying. Maybe adding dermis too? But I hesitated about dermis because of the absorption rate. ==> To summarize what I learned about my nose after the consultations 1. 1st clinic DTM: no CT scan, no consultation fee (1) Consultation order: consultant 1, director doctor, consultant 2 (2) Diagnosis of my nose condition: - Has a hump, bulbous/dragon nose - Thin skin (3) Surgical method: - Closed approach + cartilage tying + donated dermis 6 mm + nostril lowering (using donated dermis) - Sedation anesthesia + local anesthesia, then wake-up - Surgery time 30 minutes (4) Improvement after surgery: They said I could basically think of it as narrowing by 3-4 mm and lifting by 3-4 mm. However, if I wanted to clearly improve the drooping nasal tip, they recommended open surgery (they said there is a doctor at the same clinic who handles open surgery; the doctor I consulted with handles closed surgery) (5) Post-op care: no post-op clinic visit, scar-tissue injection (6) Side effects: none (7) Cost: 1.895 million + nostril lowering 880,000 + sedation anesthesia 110,000 = 2.885 million KRW (VAT included) (8) Discount: based on revealing nose and mouth, 1.6 million + 880,000 + 110,000 = 2.59 million KRW 2. 2nd clinic KYPRS: CT 10,000, consultation fee 10,000 (1) Consultation order: consultant 1, director doctor, consultant 2 (2) Diagnosis of my nose condition: - Cause of drooping nasal tip: They said the columella is short, but the alar cartilage is larger, so the nose droops. They call this an arrow-shaped nose. - Slight hump, bulbous/dragon nose, broad nasal dorsum, relatively long midface (this was the first time I heard this. I am thinking of checking with everyone in another post about this) - Relatively large nasal septum, septum slightly deviated to the right in the middle, large inferior turbinates, airway narrower than standard - Skin moderately thin (3) Surgical method: - Drooping nasal tip cannot be improved with cartilage tying alone; it will look a bit sharper from the front, but there will be no side-view effect - No silicone used - Implant-free, only the nasal tip - Open approach + hump trimming + nasal cartilage tying + alar cartilage repositioning + nasal support strut using septal cartilage + I think they said ear cartilage would be used on both sides of the nasal bridge - Sedation anesthesia - Surgery time 1.5 hours (4) Improvement after surgery: - Solving the front-view arrow nose + bulbous/dragon nose part through alar cartilage repositioning (lifting the nasal tip and lowering the nostrils a bit) - Because silicone is not used, there will be a step-off when touched (5) Post-op care: Things done by the director doctor: - Day 2 cotton removal - Week 1 stitch and splint removal - Week 2 stitch removal behind the ear - 1-month follow-up visit - After that, follow-up visits every 2-3 months until 1 year Other things (I do not know who does them): - Swelling care, scar-tissue injection (6) Side effects: dissatisfaction with the shape related to drooping may occur as I age --------- From here on, this was consultant 2 (1) Surgery cost: 4.95 million KRW (VAT included) (2) Discount: 4.8 million for writing a review (3) After-service: 1 year - Shape-related surgery: material cost - Functional surgery: no surgery fee, only anesthesia fee of 100,000 KRW (4) CCTV: can be viewed, viewing fee 200,000 KRW ==> Review of the consultations themselves 1. DTM Consultant 1 explained the surgical method and took photos with a tablet from the front, 2 side angles, and under the nose. Using the photos, the director doctor explained what kind of shape would be needed to improve the drooping nasal tip from the side. From the front, because it is a bulbous/dragon nose, they said the nostrils should be lowered using MegaDerm, drawing as they explained. The consultation was not very detailed. Through consultant 2, I heard about 6 mm donated dermis on top of the nose, and that if it absorbs, it would go down by roughly about 2 mm. For the nostrils, I heard that if 2 mm is placed, the nostrils would show about 1-1.5 mm less. Most of the consultation was what I heard through this consultant. 2. KYPRS Through consultant 1, I took a CT scan and checked the points I wanted improved.. As an aside, when taking the CT, they said it was okay to take it while wearing a necklace, so I did that. It really is okay, right? The director doctor was talking with a patient who had surgery first, so I waited about 40 minutes longer than my scheduled appointment time before the consultation. The doctor was kind. The consultation also did not feel rushed; they tried to answer all my questions comfortably, and it felt relaxed. Also, the explanation of why my nose droops was detailed, so I felt relieved to know the cause. I was satisfied with that, but while organizing things after the consultation, I started having a few questions (I may not have understood correctly, so if anyone knows information related to this, please share) (1) They talked not only about my nose condition but also about my face. Like my face shape from the front.. And they said that from the side, I have a flat face with no anterior cheekbone projection but with side cheekbones.. But I do not think that discussion connected to any future direction, like what shape would be good for the nose surgery or how surgery would improve it. (2) They said what I guess is called the nasal dorsum was wide.. I am not sure why they mentioned this. When I looked it up, people do osteotomy to improve this area, so were they talking about that? (3) Does skin being moderately thin mean it is good? (4) They did say my septum is large.. But in other people's reviews, they said they were told how many mm of septum they have and how many mm of that would be used. I did not hear it in that much detail. (4) For a drooping nasal tip like mine (arrow-shaped nose), they said that if the nose is raised, the columella may not show from the side? They used the expression that it can look cut off, and said there are cases like that, but I did not hear the solution for it. So what exactly are they going to do for me? When I looked it up, there is something like columella lowering. Is that the solution? But I did not hear this when they explained the surgical method, so I am anxious. After going around to 2 places, my overall impression is I did prepare a list of questions beforehand.. But I felt that I need to study more and supplement it. Especially during consultations, I want to see the expected post-op appearance from the front as well as the side, but there is no way to see that, so it was a bit frustrating. Next time, I am wondering if I should print out all my photos from the side, front, and under the nose, and at least draw on them. Also, clinics do not really tell you much about side effects. After doing in-person consultations, it feels like if I look things up beforehand and ask, then they answer. I felt this when I had orthodontic treatment too.. So I think patients need to study in advance. But when I looked it up, it seems arrow-shaped nose, hump nose, and bulbous/dragon nose are actually difficult cases. So I am trying to study more as much as possible by looking for everyone’s reviews related to arrow-shaped nose, hump nose, bulbous/dragon nose, septal cartilage, and ear cartilage. My next consultation is with Chamin, which I booked for mid-September (this place seemed known for revision surgery), and I am thinking of looking into 1-2 more places. Among them, there is also Lala with a single director doctor.. but there are no reviews in this community. If anyone has real surgery reviews related to Chamin or Lala, please share. Good or bad, all are welcome.