Q: I’m a 25-year-old Asian female. I had rhinoplasty 5 years ago; unfortunately a piece of cartilage seems to have shifted down to the tip of my nose. It feels so strange and sharp that it’s very distressing. I’m considering minor closed rhinoplasty with only that piece of cartilage removed. My concern is how much swelling and how long it’ll last. I can’t afford to hide away for months; my nose is already not small and when it’s swollen it looks awful.
A: Obtaining your previous operative note and consulting with a rhinoplasty specialist would be helpful in determining if your diagnosis is indeed correct. If it is in fact a piece of cartilage or cartilage graft that has shifted over time, then a removing it through a closed approach would not result in a significant amount of downtime.
Sometimes sharp contour irregularities can result from twisted or deviated cartilage, and if that is the case you may require a more extensive revision to achieve a nice result.
