Alarplasty or Rhinoplasty? (photos)

You should choose the surgery that will create the ultimate goal that you are seeking. If you are trying to narrow your nose, you would need to narrow not only an alar base but the tip and the nasal bones. Ultimately, it appears you would be happiest with a full rhinoplasty. For this reason, you should wait until the proper time and undergo a full rhinoplasty.I hope this helps

I always advise my patients to choose their procedure based on what they need - not what they can afford at the moment.  If you decide to have the wrong operation simply because it fits your budget you will be disappointed and it will wind up costing you much more in the long run. Alarplasty is a great procedure and an excellent adjunct to rhinoplasty - it is rarely successful by itself.  Changing any part of your nose will alter the relationship and harmony with the other parts of  your nose.  Your surgeon needs to be able to adjust and correct whatever they need to during the surgery.I would strongly suggest you have a full rhinoplasty and if it doesn't fit into your budget this year, wait until it does. 

Thank you very much for sharing your concerns with us.The harmony between facial parts makes us instinctively recognize the beauty... without knowing it, without defining it, just a perception that surprises and captivates us.In this regard, I suggest perform a Closed Rhinoplasty (without visible scars) to treat the tip, base and nasal bridge.With this procedure you get a delicate nose, better harmonize with your other facial features.Respectfully,Dr. Emmanuel Mallol Cotes.-

Making changes in the nose is not as simple as addressing one feature  Although affordability is always a concern with any procedure, quality should be the trump card.  A less expensive, poorly performed procedure or incomplete procedure becomes much more expensive with the need for revision. I would encourage you to save up your money for Rhinoplasty, or not have it performed at all.

 An alar plasty is performed to simply narrow wide nostrils, while a full rhinoplasty is performed to narrow the bridge, the tip and the nostrils.

mixedchich8178, Photos do not tell the whole story but from what I can see you would benefit from both. Just make sure you see an experienced specialist with good Internet photos. Do your homework! Good luck!

No alar for you! You need more than alarplasty! >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

mixedchick,I discourage patient's from having any portion of a cosmetic rhinoplasty in isolation. Seldom is there the nose that would look better simply by narrowing the alar base, removing a hump, or refining a tip. In rhinoplasty there must be a confluence of the dorsal, tip and the base contours that creates a natural appearance and a non-surgical look. From evaluating your photos it appears that if alar base reduction was done in isolation the nostrils would become rounded and unnatural in appearance. I would recommend that you postpone any surgery until you've can have the entire nose addressed. You will be much happier with the overall outcome and will appreciate the fact that you waited.

I would like to tell you that you could get away with alarplasty, but while bringing in your ala will make the ala look better, but I am afraid that it will make your tip look wider. You should save your money and get an open rhinoplasty to fix your tip as well as wide alar base.

One observation: Your alae have a vertical plane, that is absolutely vertical. This is a red-flag that you have a risk for getting a bowling-pin deformity, post alarplasty. Discuss this with your surgeon..I also agree with other doctors on this page who do not like to tie hands of the surgeon, who would prefer to do additional steps, to achieve an aesthetic result.