Posts by rowdyfalcon35

Adam Patel98 said:Packing during septoplasty is there to hold the septum in place during that critical recovery window right after surgery. A top-tier ENT told me that directly. In my case, they pulled mine out way too early, which ended up causing scar tissue and left my septum even more crooked than before. When it comes to Rhinoplasty, I agree—the packing is basically just there to soak up blood and mucus. It doesn't change how the nose looks on the outside, but for the septum, it’s absolutely vital.

Later,

Mine were taken out way too soon, too. They actually had to put them back in because the bleeding wouldn't stop—which makes sense since my nose was practically falling apart and the mucosa split. Given all that trauma and having multiple surgeries handled with one single pack, they definitely should have stayed in longer than a day. That happened twice. Because of that, blood pooled up, the cartilage started dying off, and the septum never got firm enough, so it just collapsed. Now I’ve got a perforation. Does anyone know someone who used a silicone button to fix a septal perforation? Is that a permanent fix or just temporary?

Kate Nguyen40 said:Hey, I had my nose and chin done two weeks ago, and my skin is a total disaster. These weird little bumps popped up all over my face, and the peeling is just awful. Has anyone else dealt with this? I honestly have no clue what to do...

That’s totally normal. Just grab some Bepanthen cream at the drugstore, it works wonders for this.

Zachary Palmer56 said:Yeah, I know. I've been following your posts for a while now. Let me know how this all turns out—try suing them, you might actually land a huge settlement.🙂

Look, there isn't enough money in the world to compensate me for my career—a profession I've worked my life for, which is now totally uncertain because of failed gigs this summer and having to take a break from college because I can't clear the classes I need to graduate. They can't pay me back for my peace of mind, my breathing, or all those sleepless nights... but people definitely need to be held accountable for what they've done. At least now I know that the rattling sound I’ve had since surgery—sounding like a diesel engine—isn't just some issue with my mucous membranes. It's because my dorm room is way too cramped and poorly ventilated. Take care, ladies, and trust your gut. I kick myself every single day for not listening when I saw how nervous that doctor was on the day of my surgery. It's too late for regrets now, though. We move on. Just gotta find a specialist who can fix this and pray they can patch me up so everything goes back to normal.

Zachary Palmer56 said:thanks 😁

No problem at all. Good luck! I'm totally sure you found an amazing doctor. He’s already proven himself—he predicted some things would leak that weren't even on my radar. It was similar for me, except my nose ended up a bit messy during surgery while hers stayed perfect. That's just what a great doctor does.

Zachary Palmer56 said:Does anyone remember the name of Donna Bennett73's doctor?

Dr. Raguž, thank God. He did an amazing job with her.

Kyle Wood94 said:Everyone’s obsessed with looks, nobody cares about how it actually works.

Waking up with nasal packing in your nose is no joke, trust me. My follow-up appointment wasn't until 5:00 PM the next day when the doctor finally pulled them out. Both of us were totally in agreement—we would have much rather just pulled those things out ourselves after one day. We don't get why anyone is expected to sit there with packing in their nose for 3 or 4 days, or even longer for some people.🙂

I have to jump in here, especially regarding that last point. Packing serves a purpose. Beyond just stopping the bleeding, it keeps everything immobilized. It's absolutely functional. For someone whose nose structure is being rebuilt during a major surgery—where they end up doing extra stuff beyond what was even agreed upon—it's insane to pull those packs out the very next day, especially when the mucous membrane is already trashed. And then, after the bleeding stops only to start right back up again, trying to do the exact same thing the next day? It's ridiculous. Plus, not providing antibiotics after all that, along with the other complications during and after the surgery, just doesn't make sense to me.
I thought long and hard about which surgeon to choose based on function. Aesthetics were secondary. I would never undergo surgery just for looks, even if my nose was huge. There were actual issues I needed fixed. Since I could fix both at once, why not? Unfortunately, neither went well. They did a lot of things I didn't even ask for regarding the look—there was zero mention of such drastic changes or removing that much bone and cartilage. But the biggest issue, the massive functional failure they glossed over, was from a routine procedure. Even when I had doubts—and looking at it from an airplane, you could see every single day that something was wrong—I was told everything was fine. Not until I sought a second opinion did I get the truth. Only then did he admit I had a perforated septum, claiming it wouldn't be a problem. During our first talk, he warned that the surgeon needs a steady hand because if a perforation happens, you can kiss your nose goodbye. Over time, my nose has dropped into a caricature shape, and it's still drooping. I'm glad some of you had good experiences. Mistakes happen to anyone, but you have to be a decent human being and own up to them. Most importantly, you shouldn't hide a patient's condition. Patients have a right to know their health status. If there's a hole in the septum, say it. Especially for someone who doesn't just use their nose for breathing, but relies on it for their professional career, which is why they chose surgery in the first place. Instead of fixing the problem, things got worse, and now I'm dealing with physical and mental pain until I can get a cartilage graft—which can't happen too soon because the tissue needs time to heal. Of course, "nobody is to blame." This is my final word on the matter. Please, if anyone knows a good doctor who specializes in septum reconstruction, DM me. Ideally, someone working within a hospital system, because I don't have the cash for another private procedure. I paid a premium for a private specialist (you expect better service, that you won't just be a number), and in the end, I just ended up worse off in every possible way. Thanks a lot.

stormyharbor2 said:I didn't receive any contract at all.

Me neither.

Has anyone here dealt with a nasal septum perforation, or do you know someone who has? Also, does anyone know a doctor in the US who’s actually good at repairing them successfully? Thanks a ton!

restlesssurfer11 said:Look, sure, he’s a doctor with plenty of successful surgeries under his belt. But I’ll say it again: my issue isn't that he's messing around, rowdyfalcon35. My problem is how he stubbornly insists everything is fine. Even now, despite all her issues and the findings from other doctors, he’s still acting like he’s the only one who knows what he's talking about and everyone else is clueless. In my book, that's why he isn't a great man or a quality doctor. Everyone messes up sometimes, but you have to own the mistake. Plus, this whole habit of him trashing his colleagues? It's honestly ridiculous and just pointless.

That’s what gets to me the most. If he had just owned up to it—you know, acted like a decent human being and said, "Hey, I messed up, I'm sorry"—that would be one thing. But no. Instead, he's trying to gaslight me, insisting I'm just imagining things and that everything is perfectly fine. It’s infuriating. Look, credit where credit is due, the guy has had successful surgeries, and I’m not questioning his medical expertise at all. But just be a man and admit when you're wrong. And seriously, stop trashing all his other colleagues. It's unprofessional, tacky, and honestly just low. Everyone makes mistakes. The whole point is to minimize those errors and actually care about the work you do, instead of just rushing through a massive schedule of back-to-back surgeries just so you can brag about how busy you are later. That's not how this works. We're talking about people's health here. A doctor needs to take responsibility for their actions.

restlesssurfer11 said:So, just tell me—when do you think the surgery might actually happen?

I'd go sooner if I could, but honestly, I can't risk it. It might actually make things worse since my nose is still fresh from surgery. I’ll have to hang in there for at least six months—ideally a full year—but if the bleeding gets out of control or it starts spreading fast, I'll have to jump back in immediately. My nose already looks completely different, and the nostrils are starting to close up.

rustygardener172 said:rowdyfalcon35 at least you have proof... call the Better Business Bureau or consumer protection and see what you can do to get your money back. Don't let this slide. Not just for yourself, but for everyone else who's going to end up going to him next. Clearly, his ego has reached the clouds and he needs something to bring him back down to earth. He needs to focus on the people he's operating on instead of just the number of surgeries he completes...

That’s exactly my goal. If he’s going to operate, he needs to be more careful with patients. He needs to calm down that nervous energy—all those constant swear words and outbursts while he's badmouthing other doctors during surgery. He even admitted himself that a surgeon needs a steady hand because if a perforation happens, the nose is basically toast. After all the complications following my surgery—everything from heavy bleeding for three days to a literal cyst—I was asking him every single day why this was happening. My gut told me something was wrong, but I eventually trusted him when he called me "sensitive" and said I was just part of that 5% of people who react strongly after surgery and that everything was fine. Even when that cyst appeared, he insisted it was supposed to happen and told me I was just panicking for no reason. I tried to stay positive and thought it would work out. Unfortunately, things just kept getting worse every day, both aesthetically and functionally. He told me I was draining a lot of physiological fluid and if I had to blow my nose, to do it very gently so I wouldn't disturb anything further. When I asked what exactly I could "disturb" and if maybe a perforation had occurred, he said no. So, a month later, I went back to my regular life, but every day got worse. That hole in my nose started dropping significantly, and it began stinging. I sent him a photo to get his opinion because you could literally see from an airplane angle that something was wrong. He didn't respond for a few days, then I called him and he just said everything was fine, that he'd add some fat from my knee to fix it, and that the indentation was just because a cyst formed and dropped once he removed it. I talked to some other people who had surgery, and they all thought what was happening to me was bizarre and told me I should go see someone else. Everyone else breathed better after their surgery, but I was breathing worse, even after he cleaned me out. One person breathed fine, the other struggled, and that second person had been stinging since day one, both during cleaning and generally. I went to the hospital, and after finding out about the septum defect, the fistulas, and all that, he tells me it's nothing and that the doctors I saw don't have a clue. I'll just say the doctors literally crossed themselves when they saw what was done. To go from a minor deviation to these kinds of problems... regardless of whether he was selling coffee in the past, present, or future—that's his business. I just want justice. I want him to be held accountable for his actions and finally admit he messed up, even if it's just saying "it happens to the best of us." Just admit it and stop lying to me, because I am exhausted. I've had enough of breathing through my throat and having to listen to wheezing every time I breathe. The doctors told me it will get worse because the hole will grow and the nose will sink even more, and they gave me emergency treatment. I have to emphasize that after the surgery, I didn't receive any antibiotics for either the first or second time, even though I had a high fever, nausea, and constant sneezing fits. He told me it was normal and I didn't need them. Since the inflammation wasn't treated, it got worse, and pus started forming in the healthy operated sinuses. I have the proof. I have the receipts. And since I have to live with this until my next surgery—which is questionable given how difficult my case is and the months of misery ahead—I want an admission of guilt and accountability. I want to teach all doctors to be more careful during surgery, because one seemingly harmless case can turn into a catastrophe that is nearly impossible to fix.

swiftheron55 said:This is awful....
You read through a thousand posts thinking Glusac is amazing, then just one single post comes along and completely wrecks your confidence;(🙂
It's no small thing when someone decides to go rogue like that. Honestly, I don't know how anyone has the nerve to do things they weren't explicitly told to do... if someone did that to me, I wouldn't even know how to react...
Plus, there are plenty of people who don't say everything they're actually thinking and then end up complaining, even though it's their own fault...
But your example is just catastrophic. A person can get carried away a little too easily.
I have surgery scheduled with him, and honestly, I'd probably cancel right now.
Just terrible.🙂

He’ll probably be way more careful with you now than he was when he operated on me—he was so nervous and egocentric back then. I really regret not listening to my gut...

restlesssurfer11 said:Some people just can't admit when they're wrong, and honestly? It’s not okay.🙂

What really gets me about this whole situation is that he actually told me he was just fixing a minor deviation. Meanwhile, he went and gave me a massive septal perforation! On top of that, there were other nasty issues, but this is easily the worst part. He can talk all he wants, but I have my pre-op CT scan. At least that serves some purpose since I sat through all that unnecessary radiation. I have every single medical record right here. He can take his excuses and shove them—he can try selling those stories to someone naive, because that’s exactly what I was. Just a fool. I used to think everyone here was happy with their results, but looking back, maybe two or three girls on this entire forum are satisfied. Everyone else keeps sliding into my DMs telling me how he messed them up—whether it's the aesthetics or the breathing—and now they're heading back in for more surgery. Thank God he didn't wreck their septum the way he did mine.
A refund is the absolute bare minimum they can do. Honestly, thank God I made it to the hospital in time and avoided meningitis. Huge thanks to the staff at Rib. People were practically crossing themselves seeing what this guy did—from the messed up dorsal area to these nasty complications that are going to be a nightmare to fix.

restlesssurfer11 said:I heard the exact same story once...😢But honestly, just go see Dr. Racic at the hospital. He’s seriously amazing. The only catch is the wait times—you'll be waiting forever for an appointment, let alone surgery. You could practically start the process and by the time they call you, enough time will have passed that you might actually need a revision. Also, any chance you could DM me some photos? Thanks!

Hey. I'm not sending any photos because, frankly, it looks terrible. I don't want to scare anyone when I already have to deal with looking at this mess in the mirror. To put it simply: imagine Michael Jackson's nose, look at him from the side, then imagine it twice as thin and hollowed out until there's barely even a profile line left—that's my nose right now. They told me today it's only going to get more sunken as the indentation grows. It needs urgent surgery, but they won't operate because some idiot broke my entire nose and shortened all the bone structure. 😢
I'll get the surgery done in Chicago, either at the local hospital or over at Rib. If I had just gone to them immediately, none of this would have happened... I can't forgive myself.

steelangler88 said:Listen, ladies, I’d much rather someone tell me they don't want to make promises. It's way better than someone promising the world and then delivering absolutely nothing—or worse, just straight-up crap. Take my first surgeon, for example... man.
🙄

And mine too.

rustygardener172 said:Doctors and patients just see things totally differently. He’ll only do exactly what you asked for and what he said he was going to do.[/B]
Personally, I can't complain about Dr. Glusac because he did everything he promised to do.

My nose ended up looking like a caricature. Thank God he actually stuck to his word, though. Before the surgery, he never even mentioned anything about touching the tip or such an extreme cartilage removal—now I actually need a secondary rhinoplasty for grafting. If anyone here has been through this or gone in for a secondary cartilage build-up, please shoot me a DM.
steelangler88, check your inbox and get back to me. 🙂

darkmaker9 said:Thanks. But honestly, I'm fuming... what's his take on my situation now??? Is he claiming it'll just fix itself?! And what kind of surgery did you have? Also, that place is super close to me, thanks for the tip—I'll definitely check one of them out.

darkmaker9 said:Thanks so much, everyone. If it wasn't for this forum, I would've been under the knife by now.

restlesssurfer11 said:I got the exact same story. He wants to open up my sinuses and put medication in there because he thinks that's where the issue lies. Thank God I didn't get a sinus X-ray; just more unnecessary radiation thanks to some quack. I'm seriously so sorry you're going through this. I feel incredibly lucky I backed out when I did before things went south...

He’s basically saying it’s not his fault and it’s not my fault either... totally dodging responsibility. He claims my mucosa is ruined and that I'll be able to breathe properly by next summer, maybe even the following one. The mucosa is shot, and the rest will show over time. Right now, it's obvious I'm missing cartilage, and there's such a pronounced nasal deviation that even my lightest glasses slide right off my face because there's nothing to hold them up. And it'll probably get thinner over time. Now he's thinking about injecting fat from my knee... from what I've heard, that is absolutely not a real solution.
I'm glad I could at least help someone. I wish somebody had warned me. He sent me for a CT scan before the surgery for no reason—just more radiation—and I was foolish enough to go along with it. Now I have to redo it just to see all the damage he did inside. Unfortunately, I'm starting to hear more and more negative stories from his other patients who went through the exact same thing—he operates on stuff that needs it and stuff that doesn't. In the end, I'm left with a total mess... my nose looks worse than before the surgery. I can't forgive myself for not going to a hospital. At least if something goes wrong there, there are specialists ready to step in. This guy just does whatever he wants because "he's the best and nobody else compares." Seriously, it's like something out of a bad movie. Only in America... wait, I mean, this is unbelievable.🙂

darkmaker9 said:Oh my god :OOO
How long ago was your last surgery? And you're going back already??
That's exactly what scares me. If nothing changes, I might as well just save these photos for the hospital, right? I seriously don't want someone messing around with my nose... here's a side profile shot, http://img6.imageshack.us/img6/5287/img1833ix.jpg ... if I had a bump or something, maybe I'd go fix it, but since I don't, I'm terrified of someone touching stuff they shouldn't. I just need that stupid septum straightened and that's it. I'll have to check around for a solid doctor at the hospital who actually knows what they're doing.

Your nose is gorgeous. Honestly, in hospitals, this is such a routine procedure—they do it constantly every single day. If you're in San Diego, I've heard Dr. Racic and their team are great. Sadly, I found out too late. I had my surgery a month and a half ago and dealt with some awful complications because his work caused my nose to basically collapse. I'm still dealing with it. I can't even go back for another surgery for a year because my bones need to heal; they're all fractured right now, and trying anything else could make it way worse.

darkmaker9 said:I just got my sinus scans back today—the ones Dr. Glusac asked me to get. My sinuses are totally clear and open. Seriously. The only issue I actually have is that damn deviated septum. Like he said, with him, there’s no such thing as an aesthetic fix without a functional one. It honestly doesn't make sense to me why he'd operate on perfectly healthy sinuses just by claiming they're "most important" while treating aesthetics like you're just polishing teeth at a dentist.
Now I'm stuck. A specialist at the hospital told me they could just straighten out the septum—it's a quick 20-minute procedure, some Tampons afterward, way easier than the complicated stuff. What do you guys think? I was leaning toward going private because I assumed the hospital wouldn't do it well enough... but now, I'm second-guessing everything.

After my surgery, he told me he operated on my sinuses and placed medication inside, then the CT showed everything was perfectly clear and ventilated.😕 I was just stunned...
My advice? Go to the hospital. I regret every single day that I didn't go through the public system. Now the hospital has to clean up the mess made by a private doctor who charged me a fortune, and until then, I'm stuck suffering for at least six months to a year because he basically shattered the bones in my nose.

hiddenseal14 said:Of course, everyone picks the doctor that works best for them. At the end of the day, we're the ones footing the bill.
As for the criticism, let's be real—there isn't a single surgeon on this thread who hasn't had someone rip them a new one. You just have to hope you aren't that lucky person.

A real doctor actually knows their limits—what they should and shouldn't touch. I know a girl who had the exact same functional issues I did. She was operated on at Westgate by a younger doctor who actually had the foresight to tell her he couldn't fully correct the deviation. He knew if he smoothed out the hump, the whole nose would collapse. Well, that’s exactly what happened to me. Sometimes a young doctor working in a hospital actually knows more than some private specialist who's traveled the world collecting fancy certificates. You have to be able to predict these things before and during surgery to prevent disaster. In my case, it was too late. That's what happens when ego takes over and surgeons act like they're the only ones who exist.

Justin Parker7 said:Yeah, but I saw this on a site from Westgate: 'Key factors to discuss with a surgeon before the procedure itself include skin type and age. Before deciding on nose surgery, younger patients need to reach full maturity, which usually means around 15 or 16 years old. Exceptions are made when breathing is seriously impaired.'
That's why I'm asking. :O

I heard the cutoff is actually 18 to 21 just to be safe. Unless you can't breathe properly, then you do it earlier, but otherwise, it's best to wait until after 21.