To get straight to the point, I underwent a third nose surgery because of a step-off at the nasal tip, but the nasal-tip step-off has not improved and is visibly noticeable (it started to become visible from 2 months after surgery). However, the clinic is now telling me that if I want revision surgery, I have to pay the full cost myself.
At the time, since this was already a revision nose surgery for me, it was something I had to choose very carefully, so I had consultations at almost 10 places. (After surgery done together with rhinitis surgery at an ENT clinic, the dorsal hump was not improved, and a nasal-tip step-off developed.) Wherever I went, everyone recommended using costal cartilage, but I wanted a natural-looking nose rather than a dramatic one, and this was the only clinic that promised a natural nose line using only silicone + postauricular cartilage, without using costal cartilage.
The reason the step-off developed in the first place was that the nasal silicone chosen by the ENT clinic during my first surgery was too high, but it was also judged that there was not enough material (ear cartilage) to raise the nasal tip. So why did the doctor make the same step-off happen again…
From this point alone, I already think there was a violation of the duty to explain before surgery. They did not first tell me about the possibility that the nasal tip could drop again and cause another step-off.
It had only been 2 months, and if the step-off started appearing as the swelling went down, I can only think of it as surgical negligence. They said it would be better to wait until 6 months, so I waited, but the step-off only looked more prominent..;;
The manager A, who had consulted with me before surgery, had already left, and the person in charge had changed to manager B... From here on, it was one absurd thing after another…
As the nasal tip dropped more noticeably, the step-off gradually started to look much more obvious. The side line also looked more uneven
I visited the clinic and spoke with the doctor in charge. He said, “Even if more time passes, the tissue probably will not fill in.” “It may stay like this, or it could drop even more.” He also said that since my tissue seemed weaker than expected and there was not enough material, it likely sank down, and told me to consider a revision surgery plan of adding more postauricular cartilage..
Then in the first place, when doing the open surgery that I emphasized so much so that a step-off would not happen, wouldn’t this not have happened if they had been careful? Also, if they had made me aware of the fact that this could happen again, I would have considered things more carefully too..
But in the middle of all that, the doctor said it depends on how you think about it, and that since it looks like a dorsal-hump nose that is trendy these days, some people might think it looks natural. .. Are you… joking with me right now….. Tears welled up in my eyes.
The conversations that took place that day still make absolutely no sense no matter how much I think about them. Then he told me to talk about the cost-related part with counseling manager B (who had left work, so we spoke by phone the next day).
[Summary of the conversation] Me: I had revision surgery because of the nasal step-off, and only two months after the revision surgery, another problem appeared at the nasal tip. I cannot understand why I should have to bear the entire cost myself.
Manager: No one can be 100% satisfied with every plastic surgery. Also, we were not talking about the full revision surgery cost, but only “part of the correction surgery cost and anesthesia fee.” If you do not agree to this, there is no way we can help you.
Me: Do you think I’m doing this because I want to be 100% satisfied?
Manager: Isn’t that what this is? (From this point, I felt like they were trying to shift responsibility onto the patient.)
Me: I had plastic surgery because of this step-off problem. If this has not improved, isn’t this an issue with the medical technical judgment during surgery?
Manager: (She kept shifting responsibility, saying the surgery went well, but that my skin was thin and the shape changed as time passed.)
....This kind of conversation kept going back and forth…
Me: (I had already uploaded review photos.) There is absolutely no problem if I add an update to the progress photos in my previously written review about the part where the shape has currently changed, right? I would like to add this information for the public interest.
Manager: Are you threatening me right now?
The conversation suddenly flowed this way, so I hung up for the time being.
We continued the conversation on KakaoTalk, but it was not much different from what was said on the phone.
They cannot make me 100% satisfied with the result of nose surgery, and if I do not like the nose shape, I should pay the correction fee and get revision surgery.. That is what they are saying.
Is this really the proper attitude of someone who is a counseling manager at a plastic surgery clinic… Even looking back, I still do not know..
The level of counseling was so poor, and she only pushed emotions to the front, so I was very upset and contacted the clinic asking them to change the counseling manager, but they said they cannot do that either because of internal clinic regulations.
I am the victim, so why are they the ones getting angry… The surgery failed, and it feels like I have become the guilty one.
It is clearly visible that it has dropped, and I am worried it may sink down even more from here. I feel lost about what to do going forward. If anyone knows well about these kinds of nose surgery complications, I would also like to receive help.
For those considering nose surgery or revision nose surgery.. I am leaving this post because I am upset, and I hope you choose carefully and please avoid places like this…
I have detailed photos and writing on my blog, but I cannot copy the whole thing over For those who want more detailed information, I will give you the blog link.
Nose surgery complications
This review is about surgery pursuing natural beauty.