Removing too much cartilage can create a lack of support in the nasal structure, which can in turn create new aesthetic and functional issues. When there is a deficiency in support, a nasal valve collapse can occur. This causes nasal pathways to be obstructed, creating breathing difficulties.
Cartilage itself does not grow after rhinoplasty. However, cartilage grafts used during rhinoplasty can integrate into the surrounding tissues and undergo changes over time, which can result in subtle changes to the shape or position of the nose.
A cosmetic nose job should not impact the function of the nose. Difficulty breathing is a sure sign of a bad nose job. This error is more common with reductive procedures as too much tissue or cartilage is removed, reducing the internal and external passageway for poor airflow.
All strenuous activities, including lifting heavy weights, jogging, aerobic exercises, running, and high impact walking should be avoided. Intense physical movements such as pulling, bending, pushing, and anything that exerts pressure should also be avoided over the first 2 weeks following nose reshaping surgery.
Your surgeon can refine the tip of your nose by removing some of the cartilage. If you have a hump (dorsum) on your nose, they will shave it down. Your surgeon can also straighten and narrow the nasal bones by breaking and then setting them (infracture).
Tip of the Nose Is Too High
Your surgeon may have removed an excessive amount of tissue from your nose tip in an attempt to raise your entire nose. The resulting image is a “pig snout.” You may experience this temporarily as a result of post-surgery swelling. It usually disappears after a few weeks.
As we mentioned, the tip of the nose may drop slightly even if the rhinoplasty procedure doing with the proper technique. However, if your nose tip has fallen exaggeratedly and has caused an unnatural appearance, there is a high probability that a wrong surgical procedure has been performed.
A procedure can be considered “botched” for many reasons: the doctor is inexperienced, the patient has unrealistic expectations, the patient doesn't follow post-op procedure, the initial rhinoplasty is altered in some sort of nose-breaking accident, etc.
The main goal is to keep your head above your heart, as swelling, bruising, and blood all follow gravity and flow downhill towards the heart. Avoid bending over or lifting for about two weeks. Besides aggravating swelling, these activities may raise the blood pressure and cause bleeding.
If you've been watching your rhinoplasty heal over time and you're still thinking “I don't like my nose”, it's not unheard of. As many as 10-15% of cosmetic nose surgeries result in unhappy clients who will choose to undergo a second procedure to fix it.
Don't be alarmed. Things often get worse before they get better. That being said, any severe pain, excessive bleeding, or breathing difficulties are serious red flags, if you experience any of these issues contact your plastic surgeon immediately.
Repairing the Nose
Damage can be caused to a patient after rhinoplasty surgery due to various causes, like injury, trauma, or even a botched initial rhinoplasty operation. Under these circumstances, patients will need an open rhinoplasty surgery to repair their nose.
Rhinoplasty failure occurs in only 5- to 10 percent of cases.
Six Weeks Post-Op
Six weeks after your procedure, the cartilage and bones in your nose will be fully settled. At this time, there will be no restrictions on the exercise you can perform. You are free to run as hard as you want and lift as heavy as you want. You may also wear glasses and blow your nose again.
You will probably be able to return to work or school in a few days and to your normal routine in about 3 weeks. But this varies with your job and how much surgery you had. Most people recover fully in 1 to 2 months. You will have to visit your doctor during the 3 to 4 months after your surgery.
If your nasal bones have shifted out of alignment as a result of your injury, a healthcare provider will need to realign them. To do this, they'll numb your nose with local anesthesia, then gently push your bones and cartilage back into place.
Tip plasty is perhaps the most difficult aspect of rhinoplasty. Several methods are used to correct the tip.
The first week is the most critical period for rhinoplasty healing. After 7-10 days, patients can begin to use other sleeping positions. Be careful to avoid putting pressure on the nose, and if you can sleep comfortably on your back while elevated, continue to do so.
Heavy lifting should be avoided after rhinoplasty as it can increase blood pressure and disrupt the blood flow to the nose, which can interfere with the healing process. Patients should avoid lifting objects, even small children, over ten pounds, and limit vigorous sexual activity in this initial phase.
This tissue can hang too low because of a disproportionately long septum, or because of the positioning and orientation of the nose cartilages. Aside from natural occurrences, a hanging columella can also be caused by a mistake in a previous rhinoplasty.
Reach out to the surgeon who performed your rhinoplasty, clearly explaining what you are unhappy with, and ask them what could have caused the issue. If you are confident that your original surgeon can correct where they went wrong, discuss a revision rhinoplasty with them.
During healing after your rhinoplasty procedure, you may notice that your nose tip appears a bit asymmetric. This is quite normal, particularly if different parts of your nose are healing at different rates.
Generally, swelling is the most common reason why your nose looks bigger after rhinoplasty, which is completely normal. As a general rule, half of the swelling in the nasal tip will be gone after a month, but it will take at least a year for the tip to reach its final shape.
Tip drop is a potential consequence after rhinoplasty. While the nose changes over the first year after this surgery, some patients may find that they require revision procedures to address tip drop that does not resolve during the healing process.
A: It is very common for a nose not only to look big after rhinoplasty but even to look bigger than your original nose. This is because of the swelling.