Q: I don’t have a HUGE problem with my entire nose (such as the bridge etc.), but it really bothers me whenever I smile and my nose suddenly looks so much wider. I realize that it’s natural for that to happen, especially for an ethnic nose but I don’t want it to be so WIDE. I just want the sides of my nose to be a lot thinner and compliment my entire face. And I’m not really liking the idea of an open rhinoplasty, would it be possible if it were closed?
A: Alar base modification is an effective way to reduce the flare and/or width of the nostrils. Showing us a base view (photo from bottom up looking up into your nostrils) is the best view to evaluate your nostrils. Excess width can be reduced with sill incisions, excess flare with Weir incisions, and excess flare + width addressed with a combined Weir+sill incision.
