REVISION RHINOPLASTY
Revision rhinoplasty refers to having a procedure on the nose after one has previously already been performed.
There are many reasons why a patient may have revision rhinoplasty:
*patient has new goals or wants to make further changes
*there was a complication from the first procedure e.g. infection
*first procedure was many years ago and new techniques are now available
*healing was not as expected and the desired result was not entirely achieved
Revision rhinoplasty is frequently but not always more challenging than the first procedure. This is true for a variety of reasons:
*There is likely scar tissue from prior procedure
*There may be technical limitations in achieving the desired goal
*Additional procedures may be required e.g. cartilage harvesting and grafting
*Patient may be unhappy with results of first surgery and managing expectations can be difficult
*The initial procedure may have resulted in reduced ability to breathe through the nose; this can be difficult to improve
Some changes performed during revision rhinoplasty are minor and can be more easily achieved. But more commonly, the changes desired are significant and because of prior surgery and damage to the nasal structures, the procedure can be complex. It is very important for the patient and the surgeon to understand what the goals are, whether they are likely to be able to be achieved, and the process to achieve them. Dr Strecker advises patients with regard to what changes he believes that he can achieve, and which problems he does not feel that he can provide a solution for.