When I was also debating between total removal or revision surgery, I got a lot of information from this community, so I’m going to write consultation reviews!! It hasn’t been long since I had total removal, so I’ll write a removal review later if my progress looks okay... First, total removal was my third surgery, and my previous two surgeries were both done at the same hospital. My rhinitis was so severe that I had functional rhinoplasty at an ENT clinic. At that time, they used 3.5 mm silicone + septal cartilage. The revision was about 2 years and 6 months later because the glabella area was too high, so from what I remember, I had the silicone lowered + dermis reinforcement because the nasal tip cartilage was showing through (but I guess the dermis was absorbed, because during consultations everyone said there was none left) + nasal tip with ear cartilage + septal extension. The reason I decided on removal was mainly anxiety, the foreign-body sensation from the silicone + deviation, and because the nasal tip cartilage was showing through way too much. I had consultations at four places: ㄱㅇㅅ, ㅅㅅㅇ, ㅊㅁ, and ㅈㅅ. I wanted to consult at more places too, but appointments were backed up a lot. Still, I recommend going to as many hospitals as possible.
ㄱㅇㅅ There was a wait. They said total removal was possible, but considering the shape, they recommended removing the silicone, then doing nasal tip revision surgery and crushing ear cartilage to fill the glabella area and the step-off. There was no CT, and I think they checked by touching my nose. After looking at my surgical records, they said they thought they could tell what my original nose looked like even without seeing photos, and they drew it for me. It was similar to my original nose, so that was interesting. They examined me carefully and explained things I didn’t know with drawings. I was worried because there were many reviews saying people got scolded, but the doctor wasn’t cold or anything. However, the atmosphere did feel a bit heavy, so it wasn’t easy to freely ask everything I was curious about (it was my first consultation, so I also didn’t really know what to ask). The price was the second most expensive.
ㅅㅅㅇ I think I asked the most questions here. They answered everything well. The wait was long. Considering the shape, they did not recommend total removal. They said I should remove the silicone but proceed with nasal tip revision surgery. Still, they said if there was irregularity on the nasal bridge after taking out the silicone, they would smooth it and shape it. They also said that even if the ear cartilage was left in, the nasal tip would become lower than now, so the show-through would be less noticeable. The consultation was detailed and good, and again there was no CT. But my ear cartilage at the nasal tip was showing through so much that I could feel it was pointy, yet during the consultation with the consultant, she said this degree was not even that much show-through, so I was like, huh? They said total removal would also be possible if I strongly wanted it, but even with total removal, there was a spreader graft? and they said they would leave that in. They said my nose would collapse if it was removed. So I decided that if they were going to leave that in anyway, I might as well think about the shape, remove the silicone, and do nasal tip revision. The price was also the cheapest.
ㅊㅁ The director somehow seemed extremely confident. If ㄱㅇㅅ and ㅅㅅㅇ felt like neighborhood clinics, from here on it really felt like a plastic surgery clinic or dermatology clinic? They took a CT, and the doctor said my nose was a very easy nose and total removal was definitely possible. They said if I did total removal, there would be depression at the nasal tip, so it would need to be reinforced with buttock dermis. During the consultation, they said they could do small things like correction of downward drooping of the nasal tip? and smoothing a hump, things like that, but when I heard during the consultant’s explanation, all of that added ++ to the price, so this was the most expensive. But if it was simple removal only, the price was okay. They also said my septum was deviated, so I should correct the septum and do rhinitis surgery together and file an insurance claim. Also, they said if the columella collapsed, they would fix it with MegaDerm or donated dermis, so I passed. I absolutely did not want to put in any external material.
ㅈㅅ Honestly, by this point I had already mostly decided on another hospital, but I wondered, if I’m going to remove the silicone and do nasal tip revision surgery, wouldn’t it be better to do it somewhere good at revision surgery? So I went for one consultation. They took a CT too, and you could compare before and after in 3D, which was interesting.. But I’m not sure whether the shape would actually come out exactly like that. It was the same method as ㅊㅁ: total removal + nasal tip buttock dermis + filling the step-off on the nasal bridge with ear cartilage. The surgical method was similar, but the price was a bit cheaper. The director here was also full of confidence and said there would be no collapse or anything like that. In particular, they said the nasal tip showed through way too much, so it seemed it should not be left in. I said my original nose was quite droopy, so I hoped only that part could be slightly improved, and they said they could make it shorter.
None of the 4 places pressured me to make a reservation. But because the surgical methods were different and what they said was different, it was confusing too. Especially because I went in having decided on total removal, but they recommended the revision side, so I couldn’t settle my mind.. But in my opinion, the nasal tip show-through was very severe, and even if I lowered it, I knew it would show through again later and the shape would change, so I decided on total removal. I think everyone should go in having decided on one clear direction. Since I wasn’t sure myself, there wasn’t much the directors could say with certainty either. When I finally chose a hospital, I read as many reviews as possible and chose the place where the nose shape was at least closest to my taste. And no matter which hospital’s reviews I looked at, there was always at least one bad review. I compared both good and bad reviews! It hasn’t been long yet, so I still don’t know my own nose, and I don’t really want to write the information about the hospital I chose too openly,, If you comment, I’ll let you know. Still, please don’t do it just because you trust me!! Make sure to get consultations at several places. + I won’t check private messages, so if you’re curious about anything, please leave a comment. Since anonymous comments are more likely to be brokers, I won’t reply to them. I feel like I wrote this really incoherently.. If there’s anything you don’t understand, ask me!