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What Are the Possible Risks in Shaving Down Nose Hump?

asked 2 years ago by olympian04 in Ann Arbor
Latest answer by William Portuese, MD
Question viewed 4,111 times
Tags: nose, male, dorsal hump, droopy, risk, shave, skin

I have small hump on my nose (dorsal) part of the prominence resulted from and injury and part I feel was inherited? I never really noticed before I broke my nose. Anyway, I was wondering what the risks were to shave it down?

Are there any risks later on down the road as I get older; changes in appearance from the front, nose drooping, or having extra skin? I found a pic online of what mine looks similar to. My "hump" is a little higher (further from the tip, closer in relevance to my eyes) but its about the same size. Thanks.

14 answers to What Are the Possible Risks in Shaving Down Nose Hump?

A small hump can be shaved down with virtually no risk.

But as Dr. Pearlman said, sometimes you need to reset the nasal bones because they would be too far apart if this were not done. In more than 30 years of rhinoplasty, I have not had any complication from hump removal.

Toby Mayer, MD
Beverly Hills Facial Plastic Surgeon

www.bevhills.com

Risks associated with shaving down dorsal hump

The largest complication that can occur from shaving down of the dorsal hump is if the hump wants to re-grow. There is a 10% chance of having to perform a minor revision procedure on the bridge to file down a regrowth of calcium deposit after the rhinoplasty. Once the bump is shaved down, osteotomies will have to be performed to narrow the sidewalls. There are no other risks later down the road from the front, side, or tip views as long as the nose is not broken. There are no issues with... more

William Portuese, MD
Seattle Facial Plastic Surgeon

www.seattlefacial.com

Removal of Nasal Bump

Depending on size, the bump may be shaved or actually removed. Most times the nasal bones must be mobilized to achieve or maintain normal contour. In 35 years of this work, this is probably the most common request in primary cosmetic rhinoplasty.

Richard W. Fleming, MD
Beverly Hills Facial Plastic Surgeon

Fixing a nasal hump

This is a seeming simple operation that in many cases is much more complex that meets the eye. The composition of the dorsal hump will vary from patient to patient--part of it is cartilage and part of it is bone. Furthermore, the length of your nasal bones will affect how much can be safely removed. Sometimes, a hump is not really due to excess of the dorsum but recession of the 'radix' area above it. Personal examination by an experiences rhinoplasty surgeon can help you determine what... more

Sam Most, MD
Bay Area Facial Plastic Surgeon

www.drmost.com

Dorsal nasal hump

Shaving down the bump on the dorsum of the nose is done all the time in rhinoplasty surgery. One risk, is that it may expose an underlying curvature but this can be corrected at the time of surgery.

Steven Wallach, MD
Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

Removing a nasal hump

Hello, There are risks involved with any surgery. With rhinoplasty, a few associated risks may be asymmetry, irregularities, chronic swelling, infection, and bleeding. For a full explanation of risks to be aware of with rhinoplasty please see my youtube page and website. When performed properly by a highly skilled surgeon, a rhinoplasty should look great years down the road, and risks will be minimized. A columellar strut can prevent the nose from drooping in the future. Extra skin is... more

Paul S. Nassif, MD
Beverly Hills Facial Plastic Surgeon

Risks of nasal hump removal with nose job (rhinoplasty)

Drooping of the nose is a natural consequence of aging and happens irregardless of surgery. Although I am not aware of any study that has followed this process longterm, my experience would tell me that noses that are operated upon tend to sag LESS than natural noses (my opinion) over time. Risks include but are not limited to infection, bleeding, hematoma, visibile or palpable irregularities, pain, tenderness, numbness, septal hematoma or fistula, epistaxis, synechia, vestibular stenosis,... more

Otto Joseph Placik, MD
Chicago Plastic Surgeon

Risks and Additional Surgery associated with Shaving a Nasal Hump Down

The back of the nose (hump) is made of a variable combination of the 2 upper lateral cartilages and 2 nasal bones with variable contribution from the perpendicular septum. When shaving the hump down variable elements of these components are affected. If a small shave is involved and the side walls are still together / not separated, then in-fracturing of the side walls may not be needed. If the shaving down / rasping takes a segment of the roof off and the walls are separated, they need to... more

Peter A. Aldea, MD
Memphis Plastic Surgeon

Risks of Rhinoplasty Hump Removal

There are risks associated with any surgery. In some patients, actually building up the nose instead of taking down the hump is more appropriate. For a straight forward hump removal, an 'inverted-v' deformity of the nasal bones and collapse of the midvault are possible if the procedure is not done correctly. 'Inverted-V' is where the bone is shaved off and created a hollow over the bones on the top portion of the nose. Over time, the overlying skin sinks in. To correct this, at the time of... more

D.J. Verret, MD
Dallas Facial Plastic Surgeon

Shaving down nose hump

The previous answers have quite adequately explained the minimal risks in 'shaving the dorsal hump' down. From the posted photos it appears you have a computer imaged before & after? If yes than you already have the answer to your question from an in person consult. We as experts can not add much more. Regards

Darryl J. Blinski, MD
Miami Plastic Surgeon

An experienced Rhinoplasty Surgeon can remove a dorsal hump without significant risk.

There are complications associated with every surgery, including Rhinoplasty Surgery. Removing a dorsal hump is one of the most common conditions I treat with Rhinoplasty Surgery. Patient satisfaction is typically very high. You would likely benefit from slight tip projection and support that would be performed at the time of your Rhinoplasty Surgery. I hope this is helpful for you.

Eric M. Joseph, MD
West Orange Facial Plastic Surgeon

www.ericmjoseph.com

Nasal hump deformity

A small traumatic nasal hump can be safely filed down with very little risk associated with the procedure. However, sometimes depending upon how big the bump is an "open roof" can result that requires the bones to be gently infractured at the same time to close the open roof once the hump is taken down. I hope this information helps.

Scott Trimas, MD
Jacksonville Facial Plastic Surgeon

Humps on the nose can be shaved down but often patients need more

The hump on a nose can be shaved or filed down. However, often patients require more. If it is a large hump, taking off this "top of a pyramid" would need to be closed by mobilizing the nasal bones through what we call osteotomies. In some patients, less hump may be removed by adding to the area above the hump called the radix. This would leave a stronger profile. I feel computer imaging is a great tool to help visualize the potential results.

Steven J. Pearlman, MD
New York Facial Plastic Surgeon

Risks to nasal hump removal

Risks to this kind of asal surgey are mostly having to do with getting the shape just right. Possible irregularity, slight bumps, slight residual hump, etc. Also this may require repositioning of the sides of the nose to prevent a flat surface over the bridge once the hump is shaved. There is also the risk of having too much shaved. There are also always risks of bruising, bleeding, pain, or infection as is true with any surgical procedure. Most of these risks can be minimzed by having the... more