Many people have concerns about nasal appearance and function.   Contemporary techniques can address one or both with outpatient surgical procedures.  For folks who have significant nasal breathing difficulties, diagnosing structural problems causing or contributing to nasal obstruction is key.

Surgical techniques have a high success rate for repairing anatomic nasal obstruction, but if the problem is related to seasonal allergies or sinus disease, these conditions should be treated medically rather than through anatomic nasal surgery.

For instance, almost everyone has a deviated septum to some extent.  However, only symptomatic people need to consider septoplasty.  Also, a deviated septum may not be the only culprit for nasal obstruction.  When people breathe in air, nasal air moves upward and along the top of the nose at speeds of up to 35 miles per hour.  This is a gale force wind, which pulls on the structural framework of the nose, just like the sides of a house in a storm.

Some people have weaker structures, and the nose compresses during breathing giving significant nasal symptoms.  Reinforcing the supports of the nose and its cartilage can often result in a huge symptom relief, even if the septum is not necessarily addressed.

While these procedures may be more involved than having only a septoplasty, many facial plastic surgeons are trained to address these problems using cutting edge surgical techniques.  Insurance often covers these types of procedures.

Cosmetic change to the nose can be performed alone or in combination with functional nasal airway procedures noted above.  People generally are concerned about their nasal tip, nasal dorsum (the hump area) or both.  Often times both need to be addressed for the best result.

Dorsal, or hump, reduction is a reshaping of both cartilage (lower down on the nose) and bone (up higher where glasses rest on the nose).  Conservative excision and shaping of bone is done with small, freshly sharpened instruments (not the “breaking” of the nose popularized in television shows).

After addressing and stabilizing the dorsum, the tip can be rotated, projected or de-projected, and sculpted as needed.  Again, conservatism is important to allow the nose to have a strong foundation for long-term strength and acceptable cosmetic result.

Few people, even the most attractive of people, have a pretty nose. Our approach is:  the best nose is a nose that does not call attention to itself.   A nose that doesn’t stand out allows the rest of the face, the eyes and lips, to show forth and exhibit a pleasing face.