Possibility of Cartilage Shifting After Repairing Broken Nose?

Hi Ray,
Your question can best be answered by your rhinoplasty surgeon who has examined your nose carefully and has formulated a diagnosis as to what is causing your crooked nose. In most cases, the nose is much straighter after surgery and stays that way.
If for some reason it is still crooked anytime one year following your surgery, then revision surgery may be performed. It is a good idea to discuss with your surgeon the possibility of revision, and what costs you will or will not be responsible for.
Good luck and be well.
Dr. P

Nasal cartilages can shift after surgery during the healing process. At the end of the procedure the nose might look good but with time as the scarring process (normal healing happens by scar formation) starts certain scar tissue can pull on the cartilages and cause them to shift.
During surgery we try to prevent that problem by using either sutures to hold the caritlages or putting in cartilages in a tight narrow pocket where it is unlikely to move.
If the cartilage does move it can be fixe by a secondary (repeat) rhinoplasty.
Regards

The cartilage in the nose usually does not shift after the repair and straightening after a rhinoplasty. There is a small chance approximately 5 to 10% that a touchup procedure has to be done in order to realign the nasal pyramid after a rhinoplasty. Cartilage does occasionally have a memory to it, along with nasal bones wanting to heal crooked if it has been crooked for many years. This is why it is important to go to a very experienced rhinoplasty surgeon who has performed thousands of rhinoplasty surgeries. Occasionally, one sided cartilaginous spreader grafts can be placed in the area to improve asymmetry and prevent a warpage of cartilage.

Yes, your cartilage can shift. In fact, the bones, cartilage, and skin of the nose all make up the 'framework' that gives your nose it's shape. Any or all of them may conspire to cause your nose to 'shift' back to it's original form despite your surgeon's best efforts. This is one reason why crooked noses often 'shift' back over time after surgery. Hope this helps (BTW, this is also true of the septum during septoplasty).

It is hard to predict what will happen. Cartilage does have "memory", however this an be overcome with sutures and other techniques. Speak to your surgeon.

The septal cartilage should not shift back after repair if it is stabilized correctly.  If you experience additional trauma to the nose, of course, this could alter your results.  Shift of the cartilage off the midline will often give an appearance of a crooked nose, and sometimes can be severe enough to affect your breathing.  For both functional and cosmetic reasons, therefore, this should be corrected during your surgery.  Good luck, nsn.

These are excellent questions that you need to ask the doctor who you plan to have do your nose. Anything is possible after surgery, but you need to find out about YOUR doctor and what his experience is with this happening.

A crooked nose is one of our biggest challenges in rhinoplasty surgery. Although a successful result is usually achieved, there is a risk of some residual deviation. A revision is always possible. Ask your surgeon about the risk, how any complication will be handled, and who will pay for it.