Excellent Revision Rhinoplasty Experience

As a kid, I was diagnosed with hemifacial microsomia. For those who don't know what that is, it's a congenital defect where one half of the face stops growing prematurely, but the other half continues to develop through puberty. So, my nose was crooked and one side of the nose was smaller than the other side. To try to correct this, I had my first rhinoplasty done by a maxillofacial surgeon (who did a great job on my jaw surgery, so I thought I could trust him), but that didn't go well. One nostril developed a weird lump and over a period of years the bridge of my nose actually collapsed. The nose stayed crooked, and I had trouble breathing.

When I finally decided to do something about this March 2020, I wasn't expecting much. I was just hoping my nose would no longer stand out as a deformity, but I had measured expectations for what was possible. When you have a congenital defect, you don't expect perfection.

Dr. Rawnsley vastly exceeded my expectations. I waited to write this review until a year had passed (my surgery was March 2020), because the swelling takes a long time to subside, especially for a revision rhinoplasty, and you don't really know your results until enough time has passed. I still have a little swelling in the tip, but I can tell you that my previously deformed nose is actually cute!!! My nose is straight, there are no lumps and bumps, it's smaller, I can breathe and it has an aesthetically appealing shape that looks better than I had ever anticipated (wayy better than the pictures of the projected rhinoplasty before surgery). Dr. Rawnsley is an artist. He totally changed my life!! I no longer feel embarrassed of my face. It can be nerve-wracking to go to a plastic surgeon, but believe me that you can trust Dr. Rawnley with your face. I only wish I had done this sooner.

Dr. Rawnsley also has a good bedside manner, and his office staff are helpful and friendly. UCLA has top of the line facilities, and the medical staff are phenomenal. Even though I was nervous about going under for surgery, I recall having a good experience and that the medical staff there were cheerful and did their very best to make sure I was comfortable. In the past, I have reacted to anesthesia with nausea. So, I let the anesthesiologist know, and she made sure to give me a sensitive concoction, and for the first time I didn't have any problems.

One recommendation I would give is to make sure you have a humidifier. When you first get out of surgery, you won't be able to breathe out of your nose (but don't worry, this is temporary!) so you'll get a dry mouth which can make it difficult to sleep, but with a humidifier it's not a problem. Otherwise, I did not experience any pain. I had pain meds, but I never had to use them. Another plus with Dr. Rawnsley is that he doesn't use packing. Just a cast. As long as you follow his directions with medications and be careful avoiding bumping your nose, you'll be just fine. Just be patient with everything! The swelling can take a long time to go down. Be sure to keep open communication with Dr. Rawnsley as you're going through the recovery process. Rhinoplasty is a complicated procedure and the swelling can take time.

All in all, Dr. Rawnsley is a fantastic plastic surgeon. The price was reasonable, the surgery and recovery experience was easy and the results are astounding.