Can you use grafts donated from say, your mother or father if they offered to utilize their ear or rib cartilage?

Question

Is it possible to use cartilage from someone else if you don't have enough or don't want to use your own and your parents would rather you use theirs so avoid scaring on the body etc.? Just curious.

Philip S. Schoenfeld, MD, FACS · Answer

Unfortunately, you body will only be happy having your own cartilage, irradiated cadaveric cartilage or an inert implant placed into your nose for rhinoplasty.  Live cartilage from another individual will be rejected by your body as in an individual with an intact immune system someones else's cartilage, even family members, will be recognized as a foreign body.

Richard Mark Winters, MD · Answer

actually you can’t.... although cadaver rib cartilage can be obtained, I do not favor it.... this preserved material tends to be brittle and more difficult to work with than your own cartilage and is quite expensive.... i routinely use patients’ own rib cartilage with no significant complaints or complications... in patients under the age of 60 or so, autologous rib cartilage is quite easy to harvest by an experienced surgeon; should be met with a near zero complication rate; is beautiful to work with; is ‘free;’ plentiful; and with the advent of Exparel (long acting local anesthetic) is amazingly well tolerated/adds little to the recoveryGood luck

Can you use grafts donated from say, your mother or father if they offered to utilize their ear or rib cartilage?

Answers (2)

Recommended reading

Everything you need to know about Revision Rhinoplasty

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

Can you use grafts donated from say, your mother or father if they offered to utilize their ear or rib cartilage?

Answers (2)

Browse related questions

Recommended reading

Everything you need to know about Revision Rhinoplasty

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