Should I Get Alarplasty Along with Rhinoplasty? What Type of Result Should I Expect? (photo)

Rhinoplasty for the ethnic nose can be done to address your concerns of wide tip, filing the bump and reducing the ala. The alar scar should not be noticeable and will give better balance to your nose once the tip is made smaller( so the base doesn't look to wide). Choose an experienced rhinoplasty surgeon who does natural noses.

I read your concerns and reviewed your photos:

I'm glad that the width and droopiness of your tip is more bothersome to you than the width of your nostrils. When I narrow nostrils, I limit the scar to the base of your nose, and this has pros and cons. The benefit is that the scars heal nearly invisibly in everyone, and subtle narrowing may be achieved. The disadvantage is that you will not achieve narrowing of the top of your nostril where it meets the sidewall of your nose. In my view, the lack of visible scarring outweighs the possible benefit of more dramatic narrowing with a visible scar.

You appear to have thick skin over the tip of your nose, and you may require a tip graft for tip refinement and narrowing. You may also benefit from adding tip support with a columella-strut graft. You could have your bump removed and your bridge narrowed.

Hope this is helpful for you.

Dr. Joseph

It's really hard to tell from your photos. I'm also not sure what you mean by alarplasty. Do you mean alar base resection, when the bottom of the nostrils are made more narrow? Or actual thinning of the nostril thickness itself? The later may cause a little bit of a noticeable scar so be careful. If you're not sure, alar base resection can always be done later as a short little office procedure. Discuss it when you go for your consults.