Anna Bakeman, MD

You have prominent lower lateral cartilage at the tip of your nose, but the rest of your nasal structure looks excellent. During a consultation, you’d want to discuss your specific cosmetic goals with your surgeon. In your case, surgery would likely involve reshaping the nasal tip using small cartilage grafts to create a more refined contour.

If you haven’t had prior nasal surgery, it’s very likely that the necessary cartilage could be harvested from your nasal septum rather than requiring rib cartilage.

Absolutely—we see this frequently. Nasal obstruction and difficulty breathing through the nose can stem from anatomic issues, inflammatory congestion, or a combination of both. Based on your photos, it appears you have significant anatomic narrowing of the nasal airway, which would likely benefit from straightening both the septum and the external nasal structure. A CT scan can help determine whether there is any underlying chronic sinus inflammation. This would clarify whether sinus surgery might be beneficial in conjunction with nasal airway surgery.

Regardless, surgery to correct a deviated septum and external nasal deviation is typically covered by insurance, as it addresses functional breathing issues. These procedures are most often performed by a facial plastic surgeon. Some patients choose to combine functional surgery with cosmetic refinements, which would involve an additional fee—but this is entirely optional!

If sinus surgery is indicated, some facial plastic surgeons are comfortable performing both components, while others may collaborate with a rhinologist or ENT colleague for the sinus portion.

Problems breathing through the nose can be inflammatory (ie allergies, chronic sinus disease) or structural in nature. Based on your brief description it sounds likely that nasal structure is at least playing a role. Even in the absence of a deviated septum, there can be problems with blockage of the front of the nose (called the nasal valve), and your description suggests something called a tension nose deformity, where the cartilage of the septum grows excessively and can lead to overprojection of the nasal tip and often associated nasal obstruction.

Photos would help confirm this and you would benefit from meeting with a surgeon who focuses on rhinoplasty to have a full exam.