What is structural rhinoplasty and how does it differ from preservation rhinoplasty and excisional rhinoplasty?

Question

I’ve come across the above terms and I am unsure what they mean and entail, any clarification and insight into when the above techniques would be used is appreciated.

Ronald J. Edelson, MD · Answer

I’ve probably done five hundred rhinoplasties and I have no ideas what these terms mean.  Plastic surgeons often try to make things sound more complicated than they need to be.  Stick with an experienced and respected rhinoplasty surgeon who avoids the fancy wordplay.

Steven J. Pearlman, MD, FACS · Answer

Patients are often looking for a narrower nose or smaller hump in rhinoplasty. We need to remove tissue, which is excision. However, this may compromise strength of the nose and airway support so we meed to respect the native nasal structure and often add supporting grafts to make sure the nose functions well; this is structural rhinoplasty. Preservation comes into play since many patients don't need the entire nose taken apart and put back together to achieve a good result, so this is the preservation part. These terms also mean different things to different surgeons and may be even  be used as marketing words for what other surgeons do as well.

Michael Elam, MD (retired) · Answer

Dear Inventive6357, It seems that there are always new words for the same procedure and much of this can be marketing. A rhinoplasty should "preserve" "structure" even with "excision" of dorsal humps or tissue.  So technically a rhinoplasty  can involve all three of these titles. Every rhinoplasty should be artistically designed to provide the patient with their desired result. You can name it whatever you want however the most important concern is that the nose is both aesthetically pleasing and completely functional. Best regards, Michael V. Elam, M.D.

What is structural rhinoplasty and how does it differ from preservation rhinoplasty and excisional rhinoplasty?

Answers (3)

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