What Rhinoplasty Can Change
Rhinoplasty, often simply called nose surgery, reshapes the nose so it sits in better proportion with the rest of your face. It is one of the most common procedures in plastic surgery. Depending on your goals, it can address size, shape, and balance in several ways.
Rhinoplasty can:
- Make the nose smaller
- Reshape the tip or the bridge, including a visible hump or dip along the profile
- Narrow nostrils that are wide or flared
- Adjust the angle where the nose meets the upper lip
Everyone’s face is asymmetric to some degree, so a perfectly symmetrical nose is not a realistic target. Our goal is facial balance and natural proportion.
A Cosmetic, Self-Pay Procedure
Rhinoplasty may also be used to repair a birth defect or an injury, or to help relieve some breathing problems, such as those caused by a deviated septum. At Front Range Plastic Surgery, Dr. Warren Schutte provides cosmetic treatments only, so nose surgery with us is done to change how your nose looks, not to treat a breathing problem. This is a cosmetic procedure that is not covered by insurance.
If you think a deviated septum is affecting your breathing, ENT Health, the patient education site for ear, nose, and throat specialists, advises discussing your symptoms with your primary care provider or an ear, nose, and throat (ENT) specialist.
Who Is a Good Candidate?
The right candidate wants an improvement, not a perfect nose. You may be a good candidate if you are physically healthy, psychologically stable, and realistic about what surgery can do. A new nose can lift your confidence, but it will not necessarily match an ideal you have in mind, and it will not necessarily change how other people treat you.
Dr. Schutte requires patients to be 18 years or older. Good candidates have also finished facial growth. Not smoking aids healing, and our nicotine policy applies: if you have used nicotine in the past year, you will need a negative nicotine test before your surgery is scheduled and a second one at your pre-op visit about two weeks before.
Planning Your Rhinoplasty
At your consultation, Dr. Schutte will ask how you would like your nose to look, then evaluate the structure of your nose and face. Several things shape what is possible: your nasal bones and cartilage, the shape of your face, how thick your skin is, your age, and your expectations.
Tell us about any earlier nose surgery or any injury to your nose, even one from years ago. We also need to know about allergies or breathing difficulties, any medications, vitamins, or recreational drugs you take, and whether you use nicotine.
You will get specific instructions on eating and drinking and on which vitamins and medications to take or avoid. Arrange for a ride to and from surgery and for someone to stay with you at least the first night. Line up help for a few days after that if you need it.
Where Your Surgery Happens
Dr. Schutte performs all of his surgeries in our in-office surgical suite on an outpatient basis. Rhinoplasty is done under general anesthesia, so you sleep through the procedure. In our suite, general anesthesia is provided only by our board-certified anesthesiologists.
Our facility holds QUAD A Class C accreditation. QUAD A is a global accreditation authority, and our suite met 100% of its high standards. Our own operative suite allows us to offer all our surgical services in-house.
How the Procedure Works
Rhinoplasty usually takes an hour or two. The skin of the nose is lifted away from the bone and cartilage beneath it. That framework is then sculpted to the planned shape, and the skin is laid back over it.
There are two main approaches. In a closed approach, the incisions sit inside the nostrils. In an open approach, used especially in more complicated cases, a small incision is made across the columella, the narrow strip of tissue that separates the nostrils.
Risks of Nose Surgery
When a qualified plastic surgeon performs rhinoplasty, complications are infrequent and usually minor. Every surgery still carries some possibility of complications, including infection, nosebleed, or a reaction to the anesthesia. Following your instructions closely before and after surgery helps lower your risk.
After surgery, tiny burst blood vessels may show up as small red spots on the skin. These are usually minor, but they may be permanent. When the work is done from inside the nose, there is no visible scarring. When an open approach is used, or when flared nostrils are narrowed, the small scars at the base of the nose are usually not visible.
In about 1 in 10 cases, a second procedure may be needed, for example to correct a minor deformity. These cases are unpredictable and happen even for patients of the most skilled surgeons. The corrective surgery is usually minor.
The American Society of Plastic Surgeons also lists changes in skin sensation, difficulty breathing, poor wound healing or scarring, skin discoloration and swelling, and an unsatisfactory appearance. A hole in the septum, called a septal perforation, is rare. It may need more surgery to repair, and it may be impossible to correct.
Recovery
Expect swelling and pain in your nose and face right after surgery, and headaches are common. A splint, packing, or both may be placed inside your nose, with a splint or bandages on the outside, to support the new shape during early healing. You will receive specific instructions for caring for the surgical site, any medications, and when to follow up with us.
Initial swelling goes down within a few weeks, and most swelling has improved by 4 to 6 months.
Results That Settle Over Time
Most of the improvement from rhinoplasty should be permanent. Your final result may not be visible for up to a year, and sometimes longer, and your nose may keep changing gradually as it refines. Your face, including your nose, will still change naturally with age. To see Dr. Schutte’s work, browse our rhinoplasty gallery.
Schedule Your Free Cosmetic Consultation
Dr. Schutte is a board-certified plastic surgeon and has practiced in Northern Colorado since 2009, operating in our QUAD A accredited facility. We invite you to meet Dr. Schutte and learn more about his background.
We see nose surgery patients from Loveland, Fort Collins, across Northern Colorado, Wyoming, Nebraska, and across the country. We are cosmetic only and no longer accept any type of insurance for our services. All our services are self-pay cosmetic procedures. Your consultation is complimentary. We offer CareCredit and PatientFi for patients looking for financing options to pay over time. Give us a call to schedule your complimentary consultation at our office at 1992 Rocky Mountain Avenue in Loveland. Our goal for you is a natural-looking result that leaves you with a more refreshed look, but still yourself.
