What is the Safest Material for Asian Nose Bridge Augmentation? (Rhinoplasty)

For a flat nose bridge that needs significant augmentation, I feel you will need a more substantial graft.  Silicone I feel is a safe and effective implant that is most commonly used for this.  I frequently see goretex implant infections from other practices and do not use this material.  The choices for grafts harvested from your own body that would give you the degree of change you desire include rolled dermal fat graft, diced cartilage wrapped in fascia and rib cartilage graft.  These all could work, but would lengthen your surgery time and cost.  There is some variability in results as well.  For example, rib cartilage can warp with time, causing distortion of the nose.  Some degree of shrinkage of dermal fat grafts or wrapped diced cartilage is usually expected.  Generally, for most Asian rhinoplasty surgeons, these materials are used in cases which a silicone implant didn't work, which is the minority of cases.  Please consider the vast majority of patients who have had perfect results from an Asian rhinoplasty have had a silicone implant without any problems at all.

Thank you for the question. You are correct: Goretex and silicone (Silastic) implants are used for building up the nasal bridge. The alternative to these materials is to use your own tissue. In most cases, this is the preferred method as there is a lower incidence of infection or complications. Cartilage can be harvested from the septum, ear, and/or the rib. This is either carved into a single piece or diced into a "cartilage paste" and wrapped in fascia (connective tissue) that is also borrowed from your own tissue. The costs of the implants are generally quite reasonable and the procedure is faster. However, this is off set by the higher rate of complications. Best of luck moving forward!

Using tissue from your own body is safer than any synthetic implant.  It will become fully incorporated into your nose and provide a permanent result.  Silicone and Goretex remain as foreign bodies within your nose, and will carry a risk of infection, migration and extrusion as long as they are in place.  

Typically the cost of surgery with your own cartilage is more expensive because it is a longer, more involved surgery.  Instead of using a pre-made implant, the surgeon must harvest the tissue and fashion it specifically for the patient.  This adds OR time, anesthesia time, and surgeon time, thus creating some added costs vs. a synthetic implant.