The art of rhinoplasty requires that the appearance of the nose be modified delicately while the airway passage is respected. Older Michigan rhinoplasty techniques focused on reductive rhinoplasty surgical maneuvers. The emphasis was to reduce the size of the nose by removing cartilage so the nose appeared smaller. Unfortunately, this could cause consequences such as a pinched look, poor breathing, overly scooped ski jump noses, and an overall plastic surgery look. Moreover, this type of surgery to revise can be very difficult because cartilage and structure has to be put back in the nose while trying to avoid making the nose look bigger.
Thus, the art of a great Michigan rhinoplasty balances removing, or really sculpting/trimming, the excessive cartilage and bone in your nose while strengthening the areas related to breathing. This involves using nasal cartilage grafts, like “spreader grafts”, to support the areas related to breathing in your nose. Also, a certain amount of cartilage must be left in the nasal tip to allow good support and longevity. Some surgeons term this type of rhinoplasty an “open structure rhinoplasty”. This means we open the nose to modify the framework of the nose while maintaining a solid structure to the nose. This is the type of rhinoplasty that I perform.
Typically, surgeons that have an Otolaryngology Ear, Nose, & Throat background are trained well to create noses that function well and look delightful.
Dr. Malhotra
