Your nose not only occupies a prominent position on your face, but it also plays important functional roles, such as helping you breathe and allowing you to smell and taste things. Since the nose is so important, it must function as well as possible.
Due to the shape and anatomy of their nose, some people experience difficulties with breathing. One common cause of breathing troubles is a deviated septum. A deviated septum leans too far over to one side of the nasal cavity, blocking the passage. While the issue doesn’t always need correction, when it makes it difficult to breathe or causes other issues with the nose, surgery is often necessary.
If surgery is recommended, your surgeon will most likely perform a septoplasty to correct the deviated septum. Septoplasty is a functional type of surgery, meaning it doesn’t change the appearance of the nose. If you hope to improve your nose’s appearance, a cosmetic rhinoplasty may also be recommended. Many people combine the two surgeries to get the greatest benefit. Learn more about the benefits of doing so and any safety considerations to think about.
What Is Septoplasty?
The goal of septoplasty is to improve the flow of air through the nasal passages by repositioning the septum. The septum is the cartilage and bone tissue that runs between the nostrils.
During septoplasty, a surgeon will focus on cutting away the bone and cartilage before replacing them in the interior of the nose. Like other types of nasal surgery, a septoplasty requires a considerable amount of skill and experience on the part of the surgeon.
What is Cosmetic Rhinoplasty?
It’s important to understand that a septoplasty won’t change the way the nose looks on the outside. It will help you breathe more easily, though.
If you’re interested in changing something about your nose’s appearance, such as its size, the flare of the nostrils, the position of the tip, or the presence of a bump on the nose, you’ll want to have rhinoplasty performed.
What happens during rhinoplasty depends in large part on your overall goals. Your goals and the extent of the changes you want done to your nose can also determine the type of surgery you’ll have.
During an open rhinoplasty, the surgeon makes an incision on the outside of the nose, at the base, between the nostrils. Open rhinoplasty provides the surgeon with a better view of the interior of the nose but does leave a small scar after it is finished.
A closed, or endonasal rhinoplasty has the surgeon make all of the incisions on the incision of the nose. Access to the interior of the nose is more limited during a closed surgery and any scarring is not visible on the outside of the nose.
Why Combine the Two Surgeries?
While some patients will benefit from a septoplasty on its own and some will benefit from a cosmetic rhinoplasty by itself, many will benefit from a combination of the surgeries.
Having two surgeries at the same time also offers multiple advantages to a septoplasty Virginia patient. For one thing, combining two nasal surgeries can help to reduce the cost of the procedures. You only need to pay for one operating room and one course of anesthetic.
Combining the two surgeries can also mean a shorter overall recovery time. If you were to have rhinoplasty on its own and septoplasty on its own, you’d most likely need between one and two weeks for the initial recovery from each surgery. When you combine the surgeries, you also combine recovery time, so you don’t need to take so much time off of work and won’t need to take a break from your regular activities twice.
Safety Considerations When Combining Surgeries
All surgeries have some risks, such as complications during or afterward. In many ways, combining septoplasty and cosmetic rhinoplasty can help to reduce the risk of complications, as you are only undergoing anesthesia once and will only have one recovery period.
That said, there are several things you can do to help further reduce the risk of complications after your combined surgeries. The most important thing to do is to follow any instructions from your surgeon. He’ll most likely give you a list of things to avoid before surgery, such as smoking and certain types of herbal or vitamin supplements. He’ll also give you suggestions and advice to help reduce side effects or complications as you heal from the surgeries.
Another way to make your combined septoplasty and rhinoplasty surgeries as safe as possible is to choose a plastic surgeon who specializes in nasal procedures. Dr. Shervin Naderi is a double board-certified facial plastic and reconstructive surgeon. He specializes in rhinoplasty and nasal surgeries and has performed countless nasal procedures as well as published extensively on the topic.
To learn more about the safety and benefits of combining nasal surgeries and to see if septorhinoplasty is the right option for you, contact The Naderi Center today. We have two practices in the DC area and are currently offering virtual consultations.