Would a steroid injection help minimize scar tissue 3 years post rhinoplasty? (photos)

Question

Hello, I had rhinoplasty 3 and a half years ago. There is excess scar tissue formation inside my nose. Since the right side of my nose is round and soft, I think there is scar tissue formation there as well. Is it useful to apply steroid injection? Even if I had a revision, I was hesitant because there was a possibility that it could reoccur.

Eric M. Joseph, MD · Answer

If you're concern is the protuberance along your left nasal tip, this could be an edge of cartilage that has become visible after rhinoplasty surgery. Injecting a steroid into this area may not be of benefit, and could potentially worsen the condition. Consider meeting with a reputable rhinoplasty specialist to see what might be best for you moving forward. I hope this is helpful. Sincerely, Dr Joseph

Ruslan Zhuravsky, DO · Answer

Hello, From the photos, it does not look like scar tissue. Your tip cartilages are very round or "convex". This is something that I come across frequently in revision cases as it takes more advanced techniques to address properly. The curvature of the cartilages at the outer portions needs to be flattened so that they do not produce bulk, but are still present in order to support the nose and nostrils. I would not use steroid injections in this area as it does not appear to be very thick skin, and steroids can create issues of hypopigmentation (pigment change) and /or atrophy (indentation). For revision rhinoplasty, please make sure to find someone that has special expertise in Rhinoplasty. I cannot stress this enough. Good luck!

Kurren Gill, MD · Answer

Steroid injections are most likely to be effective when the scar is still in its remodeling phase prior to maturing, which typically means within the first year. They can still improve scars even after a year, but the efficacy may be less. However, aside from the risks of steroid injections themselves, there is not much downside in trying steroid injections and gentle massage to the area to see if some of the scar tissue can break up, even if slightly. Hope this helps!

Darryl J. Blinski, MD · Answer

Based on the nicely posted series of postop photos you don't need steroid injections but tip revision. That is because residual lower lateral alar cartilage is still present! Fee fro $10,000 Seek in person or virtual consult with....

J. Renee Booth, MD · Answer

There are multiple potential causes for the persistent bulbous nasal tip. As you mentioned, it could be excess scar formation. In some cases, a series of steroid injections (with or without 5 fluorouracil) can control this issue. Serial injections are usually used early in the post-operative course (within the first few months), but it is still worth a try. The other possibility is that there is cartilage causing the shape to be round. This will not improve with steroid injections and would require a revision surgery. Another possibility, which is less likely, is that the skin has some "memory" which means it is holding a round shape on its own. A skin tightening procedure such as Halo or radiofrequency microneedling could help this and it would help your skin quality in general as well.

Mats Hagstrom, MD (license on probation) · Answer

To make an accurate assessment regarding the outcome of a plastic surgery procedure we generally need to see a complete set of proper before and after pictures. If you don’t have before and after pictures to ask your surgeon to forward the pictures they took. Your surgeon is also the correct person to address your concerns about the outcome. 3 1/2 years I don’t think you have swelling in your nose and I don’t think steroid injections are going to cause anything But short term discomfort.
Are also risks and side effects with using stereo injections so unless it’s indicated I don’t recommend doing it.
Best,
Matt hagstrom, MD

Would a steroid injection help minimize scar tissue 3 years post rhinoplasty? (photos)

Answers (6)

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