"Alar batten graft" is a fancy name for cartilage that is placed on the inside of the nostrils. To understand why surgeons use these grafts, as an exercise breathe in through your nose very quickly. Notice what happens to your nostrils - they will cave in and nearly close down. When you're breathing at rest, this doesn't happen because your nostril walls (the alae, pronounced "ay-lee") are strong enough to resist collapse during normal respiration. Some people have no strength in their alar walls, so their nostrils may collapse even at rest, causing obstruction of their nasal airway. These are the people who need alar batten grafts in order to strengthen their alar walls to prevent them from collapsing while breathing, like pillars holding up a roof. "Breath Right Nasal Strips" are like tape-on alar batten grafts - they stent open your nostrils from the outside. If you have a pinched tip or feel your nasal alae collapsing during breathing or exercise, alar batten grafts may be the difference between easy or obstructed breathing.