Does an alarplasty cause noticeable scars and make nostril flaring worse? (Photo)

Question

I had a consultation with a plastic surgeon because I wanted an allarplasty because my nostrils are wide and flare. The surgeonn advised against it. He said that my tip would need to be fixed and then the flare might not bw so bad. But my nistrils are wide and flare and thick. I dont like how my tip pulls down when i smile but the wide flaring nostrils bug me the most. He told me the scars of an allarplasty are very bad and will always be noticeable.

Donald B. Yoo, MD, FACS · Answer

The design and surgical technique used to perform alarplasty determines to a large extent the appearance of the scar. When the incision is designed in a way that perserves a natural amount of curvature and flare to the nostril, and hides in the shadows of the alar base, then when meticulously sutured the scar becomes very difficult to see when healed.

Based on your photos, the width and flare of your nostrils exceeds the width of your tip, and thus would be a suitable candidate for alar base reduction alone.

Tanveer Janjua, MD · Answer

Alarplasty can reduce the flare of the nostrils and also the width. The scar is well hidden along the natural groove. 
Alarplasty is a very fine and quick procedure that can narrow the nostrils and reduce the flare to soften the appearance. It has other names as well like ‘Weir Excisions’ or ‘Nostril Reduction’. It can be done under local anesthesia. The social down time is about a week. If you want to work from home you can start it the next day. For the procedure you are evaluated to determine how much of a change is needed. In the past surgeons had recommended 2mm to 5mm reduction. This was measured by drawing a vertical line at the lateral sides of the nostrils (alae). However, I prefer to use a mirror and Q-tips to show the patient how much of a change can be accomplished. Pushing with Q-tips from the sides can mimick the change. Patient can also pinch their upper lip near the base of the nose and will show them how much narrowing to expect. I try to quantify the change as small, medium and large. Rarely it can be extra large as well. I always advise the patients to be conservative in the change as it is an irreversible procedure. The procedure historically did not get a lot of attention in plastic surgery. It was always thought of an adjunct procedure done with a rhinoplasty. Historically most ethnic groups did not get rhinoplasties. Hence, the caucasian rhinoplasty was the main procedure that plastic surgeons were trained on. 15 years ago I started making videos on the procedure and putting them on YouTube. In my blogs I started using the term 'Alarplasty' as most doctors and patients were using the term nostril reduction or Weir Excisions. I started noticing that over years the term 'Alarplasty' became popular among patients as well. Today, most patients use the term freely and know a lot about the procedure. I am very excited to see this evolution over the years. My African American patients were especially happy to learn that you can make the nose look small without having to do a full rhinoplasty. Many of them noticed that every plastic surgeon they went to offered a full rhinoplasty. 
In summary, Alarplasty is a unique procedure in itself and hopefully more surgeons get trained in it and help more people.
You can visit our alarplasty website to learn all about it. 
Click on the video link below to see the details.
Regards
Dr. J

Does an alarplasty cause noticeable scars and make nostril flaring worse? (Photo)

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Does an alarplasty cause noticeable scars and make nostril flaring worse? (Photo)

Answers (2)

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Everything you need to know about Alarplasty

Our mission is to create a world where every investment in modern beauty is Worth It.