What does rhinoplasty do?
• It corrects unaesthetic characteristics in noses that are
too long or too big, bulbous, with a hump or with a 'hanging' tip.
• It narrows the nostrils, if they are to wide.
• It corrects deformities such as those acquired as a result
of accidents.
• It helps correct certain breathing problems.
• It can give the nose a more masculine or feminine look, according
to the standards of proportion and harmony prescribed for each sex.
What does rhinoplasty NOT do?
• It cannot reproduce an exact copy of the nose of someone
famous. Remember that there is no such thing as two noses that look
exactly the same, that each face has its own proportions, volumes,
angles and outlines, and that the same nose that looks beautiful
on one face may look odd if it were reproduced exactly on your own.
• Even though it will make your face look more beautiful and
harmonious, and it will probably also improve your self-esteem,
it will not be enough to make you look perfect. We must be realistic
and accept that that kind of perfection does not exist.
How is rhinoplasty performed?
Working through the nostrils, without the need of making any exterior
incisions, the surgeon reaches the cartilage and bone located under
the skin, he may rasp or trim them with special instruments to give
the nose the desired shape and size. In more complex cases, where
deeper modifications are needed, it may be necessary to perform
a little cut across the columella (the tissue that divides the nostrils)
to access the bone.
The shape and width of the nostrils may also be modified. This
is done by means of two incisions at the base of the nose wings,
these incisions become imperceptible soon after the surgery.
Bandages
When you leave the operating room you will have a cast applied to
your nose to help it maintain its shape and to protect it. This
cast will remain in its place during a week, then it will be replaced
by a soft plaster and Steri-strip tape that will be removed a week
later.
If only the tip of the nose was modified, then a cast will not be
necessary.
Amount of pain
Medium to low. Your physician will advice you to take analgesics
every 6 or 8 hours; this will bring great relief to you.
Removal of the stitches
4 to 7 days after the surgery.
Bruises and swelling
The bruises and swelling will intensify during two or three days,
before they begin to diminish. You may look like a boxer and it
may be quite shocking for those around you, but you will feel much
better than you look. Two weeks later, only you and your surgeon
will be able to notice traces of the surgery. Cold compresses are
very useful during the healing process. In one or two weeks more,
your nose will have a completely normal appearance, but the definite
results will be fully appreciated after six months. The tip is what
takes longer to acquire its definite shape.
You may also notice some sporadic bleeding during a week or ten
days, but this is normal and you should not be worried.
Scars
All the incisions are made inside the nose and remain unnoticed,
except from those made on the base of the nose wings, if it is considered
necessary to modify the width of the nostrils. However, these scars
are very small and will become unnoticeable in no time.
Recovery
If it was necessary to modify the bone structure of the nose, you
will have to rest at the hotel for 48 hours. A week after the surgery,
you will be able to return to your social activities or job, if
you do not mind to be seen with the bandage and the swelling. You
will have to wait a bit longer before doing any hard work or physical
exercise: a month or so, according to the special characteristics
of your own healing process.
During the first days you will have to sleep with your head elevated
so that the healing process will be free of complications.
During the first weeks, the patients tend to suffer from depression.
You may find it difficult to come to terms with your new look and
you may even feel that you made a terrible mistake in deciding to
have a surgery. But you shouldn't worry. Most of the people who
today are happy and satisfied with the results of a surgery have
also gone through that phase.
Possible risks and complications
It is very unlikely for a rhinoplasty to present any complications
when performed by a qualified surgeon. However, every surgical procedure,
regardless of its triviality, has some risks and we should always
think of them as a possibility.
• Asymmetry. Even though the surgeon marks very carefully
the areas he is going to treat, there may be asymmetries. The nose
is a crucial feature of the face and it is, literally speaking,
always before our eyes, making any imperfection, no matter how trivial
it may be, very noticeable. According to international statistics,
rhinoplasties are the surgeries that have the highest rate of revision
surgeries. These revisions, if necessary, may be carried out after
six months.
• Adverse reactions to anesthesia.
• Infections, although they are very unusual if you take the
right antibiotics.
• Hemorrhage.
• Appearance of small red dots on the skin due to broken capillaries
which are, however, almost imperceptible.
• Deformities due to impacts or carelessness before the healing
process is competed. Remember that your new nose will be quite fragile
at first (that is why it is protected by a cast or tape) and that
you will be responsible for taking care of it and for avoiding any
kind of accident.
• It is advisable that you ask your surgeon whatever questions
you may have so as to do away with all those doubts and fears so
common for those who are about to undergo surgery. Plenitas and
its medical team will gladly answer all the questions you may want
to ask before your trip and during the personal interview before
the surgery. Likewise, we will gladly organize your trip to Buenos
Aires, if you wish to talk to the physician in person before making
a decision.
• It is advisable that you write down all the questions you
may have prior to the interview, so that youwill be able to read
them to the physician and get answers for all of them.
• If necessary, you may make drawings or take some pictures
with you to convey more accurately the kind of shape you wish your
nose to have. The surgeon will tell you if your wishes are compatible
with the outline and general proportions of your face, and if they
are not, he will suggest alternatives.Get ready, psychologically
and emotionally, for a very important change. Bear in mind that
for some people it takes some months to recognize themselves after
a rhinoplasty. Adults find this change more difficult to accept
than young people, since they have lived longer with their old noses
and become more used to them.
• If you wear glasses, you should try to find alternative ways
of wearing them, so that they will not rest on your nose. For example,
try to attach them to your forehead with tape, this will allow the
arms to rest on the ears as usual, but the lens will be suspended
in front of your eyes without touching your nose.
• Have a handheld mirror nearby. You will want to look at yourself
again and again after the surgery. We do not know why those bruises
are so fascinating... but they are!
• It is advisable that you get the medication indicated by
the physician in advance (antibiotics , anti-inflammatories, analgesics),
so that you will not have to take care of that right after the surgery.
• Try to get some gel bags in a drugstore and have them frozen
for when you get back to the hotel, or some ice bags and ice cubes
ready to fill them. Cold compresses will help reduce the bruises
and the swelling.
• You will probably not be able to read the first day after
the rhinoplasty, so you it is advisable to have a radio, a discman
or your MP3 player to keep yourself amused. If you need to read
or use your laptop you will have to wait until the second day after
the surgery.
Anesthesia
Local anesthesia and complementary sedation, or general anesthesia.
Length of surgery
One or two hours.
Hospitalization
There is no need to be hospitalized, it is done on an outpatient
basis.
Results
It must be taken into account that it is not possible to make any
definite judgments about the results of a rhinoplasty before 6 or
8 months. We may say that in these cases patience is a virtue that
is rewarded with an harmonious and proportionate nose that completely
changes the overall appearance of the face in a very favorable way.
Patients who have been able to achieve an adequate understanding
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