| Dr. Lawrence Colen is a plastic surgeon certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Here the doctor has answered some common questions that Bizymoms visitors have about Rhinoplasty.
Q. What is Rhinoplasty?
A. Rhinoplasty is a surgical procedure where the shape of the nose is altered by modifying the cartilages and bones that comprise the "framework" of the nose.
Q. What are the benefits of Rhinoplasty?
A. In selected situations, additional manipulations can result in a nose that breathes better, without obstruction. The changes which are "corrected" may be as a result of trauma or how the nose grew (genetics). As such, rhinoplasty can correct deformities that the patient is self-conscious about, hence improving one’s self-esteem.
Q. What are the risks associated with Rhinoplasty?
A. The risks of rhinoplasty include most surgical risks and include bleeding, infection and abnormal scarring. Each of these complications has an incidence of less than 1%. Prolonged swelling which detracts from the final appearance can also occur but is usually gone within 3 months of surgery. New deformity of the nose can also result and require another surgical procedure should this happen. This, too, is not very common. It is very important that the patient have a clear understanding of what his or her surgeon will be doing and have very realistic expectations regarding the planned outcome before consenting to the procedure.
Q. What does a Rhinoplasty procedure involve?
A. During rhinoplasty, the surgeon will make small incisions inside the nose in order to access the bones and cartilages that need to be modified. More often than not, the nasal bones are broken in order to narrow the nose after any nasal "hump" is reduced and the tip cartilages modified. Sometimes surgeons will use some of the cartilage that they remove as "grafts" to build up the tip and improve its appearance.
Q. How long does it take to recover from Rhinoplasty?
A. Following the surgery, the patient will have a splint on their nose which will be removed in about one week. If the nasal bones were fractured as part of the procedure, there will be some swelling and bruising around the eyes which will resolve over the next 7-10 days. Any residual swelling of the nose will slowly improve over the ensuing two months.
Q. How long can one expect the results to last?
A. The results of rhinoplasty are permanent.
Q. How can I locate an experienced surgeon in my area?
A. With rhinoplasty, experienced surgeons usually fall into either of one or two surgical specialties; Plastic Surgery or Otolaryngology. It is important that the prospective patient choose a Board Certified physician who is experienced with the procedure. One safe way to find a surgeon would be to access the American Society of Plastic Surgery website at www.plasticsurgery.org.
Q. How to contact Dr. Colen, if we have further questions?
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