Revision rhinoplasty in Turkey

• Scar tissue everywhere

  The planes a surgeon works in are no longer clean. Dissection is slower, bleeding is more of an issue and the shape achieved on the table is a less reliable guide to the final result.

• The cartilage may already be gone

  Septal cartilage is the usual source of grafts. If it was used or removed the first time, the surgeon must take cartilage from the ear or the rib, which changes the operation and the recovery.

• Healing is less predictable

  Scarred skin contracts differently. Two people with identical operations can heal to visibly different results, which is why no surgeon can promise a shape.

• Skin thickness sets a ceiling

  Thick skin hides refinement and thin skin shows every irregularity. Neither can be changed, and both limit what revision can achieve.

Difficulty breathing after a nose operation is common and is a legitimate reason for revision on its own. It usually comes from over-resection weakening the structures that hold the airway open, from a deviated septum that was not fully corrected, or from collapse of the nasal valve. Correcting it generally means adding support with grafts rather than removing more tissue, which is the opposite of what most people expect. The septoplasty and septal perforation pages cover the related structural problems.

1. 1

   Assessment

   Examination inside and outside the nose, assessment of breathing, and review of your previous operative note and photographs from before the first surgery.
2. 2

   Planning the graft source

   Decided in advance based on how much septal cartilage is likely to remain.
3. 3

   Open approach, usually

   Most revisions use an incision across the columella so the surgeon can see the existing structure directly. This leaves a small scar between the nostrils.
4. 4

   Rebuilding rather than reducing

   Support is usually added. Removing more tissue from an already over-resected nose is how second revisions become necessary.
5. 5

   Splint and recovery

   An external splint for around a week, then a long period of settling. Swelling after revision takes longer to resolve than after a first operation.

• How much rebuilding is needed. A small tip refinement and a full structural reconstruction are very different operations.
• The graft source. Rib harvesting adds theatre time and recovery and is usually priced higher than septal or ear cartilage.
• Whether breathing is being corrected too. Functional work alongside cosmetic changes adds to the operation.
• The surgeon's revision experience. This is a subspecialty, and it is reflected in price. It is also the factor most worth paying for.

The clinic list on this page shows the current price for each hospital with a label saying what it covers. On staged payment, see the payment plans page. If your nose has not been operated on before, or if the concern is ethnic-specific structure, see the ethnic rhinoplasty page.

• British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons, rhinoplasty patient information.
• ENT UK, guidance on nasal surgery and nasal obstruction.
• General Medical Council, cosmetic interventions guidance.
• Turkish Ministry of Health, health tourism authorisation for hospitals.