Everyone, hello again! I’m using my summer vacation to go around and consult for my first nose-tip surgery! Last week I had consultations at two clinics, GS and KBJ (if you look at my previous posts, they should be there ⸝⸝ ᷇࿀ ᷆⸝⸝), and I also had consultations at two more places, CHDCH and MYD! I still have one consultation reservation left at KP LSS. I organized everything in detail while reading reviews from this community, and I’m leaving this here in hopes it helps everyone as much as it helped me!
◆ My issues - From the front, a fleshy nose tip (round and blunt), visible nostrils, flared alar base, and a deep groove in the alar dome area - I think my skin is on the thicker side - From the side, a blunt nose tip - No columella (sunken)
◆ Desired surgery approach - I don’t especially want to touch the bridge; I want more changes to the shape of the nose tip, columella, nostrils, and alar base! - Low willingness to use donated rib cartilage + silicone - Willing to use autologous rib cartilage ○ - I want to create a columella because I don’t have one, but I’m deliberation because I prefer a shorter nose shape and my philtrum doesn’t seem particularly short either - I’m also thinking about alar reduction (I’m fairly negative about scarring)
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◈ CHDCH, 2 years since founding, 2 medical staff, Director KH, ENT specialist
The hospital was completely clean and sparkling... There was only one or two people waiting besides me? The wait time was almost nonexistent. The process was: chart 작성 - photos and CT scan - consultation with the manager - consultation with the director - consultation with the manager. This was the first place where I had my CT taken, and I learned here for the first time that my nasal septum might be too small for surgery. I had seen quite a few reviews saying the manager was unfriendly, but I didn’t really feel that at all! Just like the director in his YouTube videos, he was very kind and meticulous. But he seemed extremely busy... He explained the checklist I had written down before I even asked, but I couldn’t ask everything I wanted to ask in addition. The director moved my nose photo around in Photoshop to create a shape, and I liked the shape... The price is high, so I’m torn Consultation fee 25,000 won, no pressure to pay a deposit
- CT scan: O, about 8 photos taken
- My nose condition Severe deviated septum, and inferior turbinate hypertrophy as well (it was really severe; I was only breathing through the left side). I came without thinking about functional nose surgery, so when I mentioned it, he said turbinate surgery can be done without an open approach, so it would be fine to do separately later. However, for correcting the deviated septum, he recommended doing it together during open surgery rather than later. Since it is a function-focused surgery covered by insurance, it would cost around 660,000 won. Because I have no columella, he said it would look good to lower the columella and lift the alar base. The bridge is sufficient. It would be performed as a no-implant surgery.
- Surgical method, materials ① Nose tip, lowering the columella: nasal septum (or costal cartilage) ② Lifting the alar base: make an incision in the nostril area where the nose hairs grow, then lift it It won’t be an extremely dramatic lift, but if done together with lowering the columella, it should clearly help improve the shape. The scar is not noticeable. Q. Is this not a nose that needs alar reduction? A. I’d recommend lifting the alar base rather than alar reduction. Even if you decide to do it later if you’re not satisfied, your nose’s alar line (the line on the side where nose-tip shading is done) is already a bit strong, so if alar reduction is performed, that area could look even darker or appear pinched. Since it’s not a surgery that can be easily undone, it has to be done carefully. Q. If costal cartilage is used, does that mean the nasal septal cartilage is not used? A. Yes. There is enough costal cartilage, so they won’t touch the nasal septum. He said the surgery time would be about 1 hour 30 minutes, and about 3 hours if autologous costal cartilage is used.
- Anesthesia method Sedation anesthesia
- Explanation of limitations and side effects He said that while the surgery uses the nasal septum, my nasal septum is roughly 23*27. My case is one where I need to bring the columella down a lot, but if the width is narrow that can be a disadvantage. He said that after about 6 months, a surgery to add ear cartilage could be done, but based on what he has seen over multiple surgeries, the shape often becomes unstable and many patients end up dissatisfied, so he would recommend costal cartilage surgery. In the case of autologous costal cartilage surgery, you would have to consider the cost and the incision scar. Some people are hesitant about donated costal cartilage, but he said he did not feel a big difference when he operated with it.
- Recovery period It should be no problem meeting people after about 10 days to 2 weeks
- Before-and-after reviews similar to my nose I wanted to see them, but couldn’t... The director came into the room where I had the manager consultation, and he seemed extremely busy He did show me before-and-after photos for alar-base lifting, and that surgery was exactly for the area I wanted improved.
- Aftercare Couldn’t ask
- A/S period 1 year
- CCTV viewing availability ?
- Number of surgeries per day? Couldn’t ask...
- Price Alar-base lifting + lowering the columella + nose tip + deviated septum 880 with autologous rib cartilage / 700 with donated rib cartilage
Out of the hospitals I’ve visited so far, this was the one I liked the most, but the price is really high for a first surgery... I should have asked how much it would cost without using rib cartilage. I’m thinking of making another consultation reservation and asking the things I couldn’t ask before.
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◈ MYD, 5 years since founding, 4 medical staff, Director YYT, plastic surgery specialist
This place had the most people out of everywhere I went. Around 9-10 people... There were no people who looked foreign. The wait time wasn’t that long. The process was: chart 작성 - photos and CT scan - consultation with the manager - consultation with the director - consultation with the manager. The managers standing at the counter, sorry to say, looked quite noticeably operated-on, which made me a little hesitant... The director was kind, but somehow felt like a person with only 50% of his soul in it. He only talked about what surgery to do and what cartilage to use, very briefly, so I had to proactively ask everything one by one afterward...! In the later manager consultation, the manager said that when I consult before surgery rather than today’s consultation, they would look at it in more detail... Consultation fee 10,000 won, there was pressure to reserve. They said it couldn’t be canceled, but it could be used for another procedure. (I had heard an extremely high price at CHDCH, so after hearing the price here I ended up paying the reservation deposit, but after整理 it, I think I felt a bit... not quite drawn to it)
- CT scan: O, took about 8 photos
- My nose condition No need to touch the bridge X, the bridge is pretty. I think all of the front-view issues need to be addressed: nose tip, alar rim, nostrils, alar base, fleshy nose, and the front part of the nose. The nasal septum is deviated.
- Surgical method, materials ① Nose tip, lowering the columella: nasal septum Mainly use the nasal septum, and for the nose tip use soft ear cartilage; if the nasal septum is insufficient for the columella, they may add ear cartilage. If the nasal septum can’t be used, donated rib cartilage can be used, but they probably won’t use it much. Q. If donated rib cartilage is used, does that mean the nasal septal cartilage is not used? A. No. They always try to remove the nasal septum, cut it, and use as much of the nasal septum as possible (I had some doubts about this method. I’m just a patient and don’t really know, but if the nasal septum is thin and truly can’t be used, would they just discard it? I also worried that cutting out the septum could cause functional problems. That’s just my personal thought! For patients who prefer to use the nasal septum as much as possible, this may be a good method.) ② Lowering the nostril base: they said they would fill the front of the nose-tip nostril area with ear cartilage ③ Alar reduction: incision on both the outer and inner sides, so that the alar rim is lifted Q. I have a nose shape I like for the alar base and nose tip, but is there a way to predict what direction the correction will go after rhinoplasty? (I showed photos and explained by comparing them with my own nose) They said it’s really hard to show this, but then drew over my nose photo...! They said they would make it as close to the shape I want as possible. Q. Fleshy-nose improvement usually needs bridge surgery too, but can nose-tip surgery alone have an effect? A. Yes. You don’t need bridge surgery because of a fleshy nose. Q. Is my skin on the thicker side? Would fat removal inside the nose be necessary? A. Yes. Fat removal will also be included.
- Anesthesia method After I left the consultation, I realized they hadn’t mentioned it... probably sedation anesthesia...
- Explanation of limitations and side effects Q. If alar reduction is done together, won’t it create a pinched-nose shape? A. A pinched-nose shape happens when the concave line near the nose tip folds and becomes darker during surgery, but if the nostril base is lowered, cartilage is placed there to fill it in, so it won’t become pinched. (I liked how confident they were.) Q. Where and how much scarring will remain after alar reduction? A. It really varies from person to person, so it’s hard to say how much. Later they marked my nose photo and showed me where the scars would remain.
- Before-and-after reviews similar to my nose The manager showed me before-and-after photos of no-implant surgeries, but they were all side-profile photos, so they weren’t really similar to my case, where I wanted front-view improvement. The side line after surgery looked moderately sharp and pretty. Kind of refined... maybe a 7:3 refined-to-cute feeling?
- Recovery period [Manager] After one week, when the splint comes off, bruising and swelling may still remain, but it should be something that can be sufficiently covered with a mask
- CCTV viewing availability ?
- Aftercare [Manager] Treatment - day 2 cotton removal, disinfection / day 7 splint removal, stitches on the outside of the nose (columella) removed / day 14 stitches inside the nose removed, and if ear cartilage or autologous rib cartilage is used, stitch removal Care - swelling injections + laser, VIP care (skin care), scar-tissue injections (if needed after follow-up) are planned
- A/S period 1 year (additional material cost and anesthesia fee separate) They said that even problems arising after 1 year would be handled as much as possible
- Number of surgeries per day? Couldn’t ask
- Price The first price they mentioned was around 620 Event price for photos with the nose covered except for the tip: 430