Can you reduce alar flare without reducing nostril size? Wide alar/small nostrils (Photo)

If you make the tip more narrow & angular, you will be making the nostrils appear slightly more flared. So that is a decision that should be made following the tip-plasty. Or if there is doubt, I usually wait to see what the patient thinks and do it at a later time under local. Now in answer to your original question, there are several approaches that can be considered. If one is concerned about reducing flare, but not nostril size, a wedge can be cut out of the sidewall of the nostril without changing the size the the nostril opening. Alternatively, a de-gloving of the soft tissue off the bone allows for a slight generalized contraction of the lower one half of the nose without producing an unnatural change in proportions. And finally, a cinching suture can sometime be employed to narrow the width of the nasal base without any excisions.

Hello, hope you are well. Yes, alar flare can be reduced without reducing the cross-sectional area of the nostrils. However, if alar width is being reduced, it can have a more significant impact on the dimensions of the nostrils. I agree that a tip-plasty to improve tip definition would be a great choice for you, but alar-plasty may not be necessary at all. These procedures can always be staged (tip-plasty first) as alar-plasty is straightforward to perform under local anesthesia.
Best,Dr. Tower

An alarplasty can be designed so it is entirely outside the nostril and doesn’t make it smaller. A crescent just needs to be removed along your nostril groove