Rhinoplasty: Experiences and recovery tips?

Can someone break down why some nose jobs involve an incision inside the nostril while others go right under the nose or near the lip? Is it just down to which private clinic or hospital you choose? Also, does anyone know how Dr. Smith's work is over in Revere?🙂

So I’ve got a question for you guys—I’m heading in for a checkup this Friday, and after that, they’re going to be doing blood work and all that kind of stuff.
BUT, about two months ago, I was experimenting with some drugs, which basically means there might still be traces of them in my system.
Do you think they’ll deny my surgery if they find something in the results?

Jamie Ruiz said:Can someone break down why some nose jobs involve an incision inside the nostril while others require a cut right under the nose and the lip? I’m wondering if the specific surgeons or even the hospitals make that call. Also, does anyone here actually know the deal with Dr. Smith over at Mayo Clinic?🙂

Oh man... seriously? Have you even bothered to glance at the last page of this forum? Or better yet, have you actually read the specific thread we’re stuck in right now? 😁 I've already covered this... check my comment #2655... I was actually replying to that question Brandon Moore4 posted. Besides, we’ve been beating this dead horse for a while now anyway. 😲

copperangler89 said:I’ve got a question. I’m heading in for a checkup this Friday, followed by blood work and all that good stuff.
BUT, about two months ago, I was experimenting with some drugs, which means there might still be traces in my system.
Are they going to deny my surgery if they find anything?

Honestly, it's pretty unlikely they'll catch anything in your blood after two months have passed. The only way they'd really know is if they went looking for hair follicle tests, but that's expensive as hell and nobody actually does that unless there's a major investigation. I wouldn't sweat it too much. ☕

rustygardener172 said:It’s unlikely they’ll find anything in your blood after two months. The only way would be testing the hair follicles, but that's expensive and nobody actually does it. I don't think you need to worry... ☕

Did you have surgery???😉

slymoose95 said:did you actually go through with the surgery yet???😉

Not yet... I just can't step away from work right now. I'm aiming for late June or early July. I know everyone says it’s way better when the weather cools down, but I can't push it off any longer, and honestly, I don't have the patience to wait until next winter... 😉

Jamie Ruiz said:Can someone explain why some nose surgeries involve an incision inside the nostril while others require a cut underneath the nose or near the lip? I wonder if specific private clinics or hospitals have different standard approaches for this. Also, does anyone happen to know how Dr. Smith operates over at Mayo Clinic?🙂

It all comes down to technique, really. Everyone approaches their work differently based on their specific skill set, but I think most people end up cutting corners simply because they don't truly grasp the underlying mechanics. They skip the foundational steps, which leaves those obvious, messy marks on the surface instead of a seamless finish.

I underwent rhinoplasty about a month and a half ago—and frankly, I have this nagging feeling my surgeon was in a massive rush and completely botched the whole thing. So, I’m turning to anyone here who has dealt with a secondary revision surgery... please share your experiences. It looks like a revision is inevitable for me...

Rebecca Gomez37 said:Hey,

I have a checkup at the end of the month—so we'll see what the doctor has to say...
Under my finger, I can feel this sort of ridge at the base of my nose—though I'm not entirely sure if it’s linked to that issue with the cartilage.
We'll see how things unfold quickly enough—but he did mention that the new procedure can't even be performed until at least four months have passed.
Don't worry, you can see I'm being transparent... I'll keep everyone posted.🙂
It isn't a trivial matter to me if a revision surgery becomes necessary, but it is what it is... everything will pass, and I'll eventually have a nose that looks good and actually functions properly.👍

George Robinson58
I'm new to this forum, and since we're dealing with the exact same issue, could you please send me some information regarding nose revision surgery?
Thanks,
Thomas Alvarez5

Melissa Ward29 said:I had my rhinoplasty about a month and a half ago—and honestly? It feels like my surgeon was in such a rush that he totally botched it. I’m looking for anyone who’s gone through a revision surgery to share their stories, because it looks like a redo is definitely in my future.

It would actually be super helpful for everyone if you could just name that "surgeon" 🙂--maybe save us all some trouble!

Dana Alvarez said:The thing is, there isn't just one way to do this—it all comes down to how much skill the surgeon actually brings to the table. Most people cut corners because they don't truly understand the mechanics of what they're doing from the inside out, trying to avoid leaving any visible scars on the surface...

Look, about 95% of these surgeries are done using the closed technique (meaning the incisions are tucked away inside the nostrils). That other 5%? That’s the open technique (incisions right under the nose). But let’s get one thing straight: doctors don't switch to the open method because they lack the skills for a closed approach. They do it because some cases are just straight-up brutal. When things get complicated, you need to peel back the skin from the entire nose so the surgeon can actually see what they're doing. To quote the medical standard: "Open" technique is indicated for particularly severe tip deformities or noses that have been repeatedly operated on or heavily traumatized, where a successful outcome simply isn't possible through a "closed" approach.

And regarding that incision under the upper lip... like I’ve mentioned before, that’s specifically for patients whose nasal tip drops whenever they smile or talk. It’s got nothing to do with whether the surgeon chooses the open or closed technique for the rhinoplasty itself. ☕

rustygardener172 said:Not yet... I can't step away from work right now. I'm aiming for late June or early July. I know it's better when the weather cools down, but I just can't manage it sooner, and I really don't want to wait until next winter... 😉

Well, that timing works too. 🙂 I dealt with that brutal May heatwave myself, but it wasn't a dealbreaker... Who are you planning on visiting anyway?

rustygardener172 said:About 95% of these surgeries use an internal technique—meaning incisions are made inside the nostrils. That remaining 5% uses an open technique where cuts are made just below the nose. However, this isn't because the surgeon lacks the skill for a closed approach; rather, the open method is reserved for more complex cases where the surgeon needs full visibility by lifting the skin from the entire nose. To quote: "The 'open' technique is indicated for particularly severe tip deformities or noses that have undergone multiple previous surgeries or trauma, making a successful 'closed' approach impossible."

As for the incision under the upper lip... I've mentioned before that this is done for patients whose nasal tip droops during facial expressions or when they speak. It isn't actually tied to the specific surgical technique used (whether open or closed). ☕

I suppose so... several surgeons told me this personally, so I'm just passing along the gist of what I was told...

Melissa Ward29 said:I had my rhinoplasty about a month and a half ago, and I honestly feel like the surgeon was just rushing through it and completely botched the whole thing. So, if anyone out there has gone through a revision nose job, please share your experiences because it looks like I'm definitely heading back in for a correction.

Yeah, seriously, who did you go to? I'm actually getting interested...🙄...was it a private practice or at a hospital?

Dana Alvarez said:Hey, I’ve got my surgery scheduled with Dr. Joe on June 30th too. Honestly, I'm just sitting here wondering when the first available slot for the actual procedure will be. Hopefully, it won't be too long of a wait.🙄

Thanks for getting back to me. Here’s the situation on my end: my 17-year-old son decided he wants to get a nose job this year. I'm fully behind him on it. He’s got an appointment booked with Joe next week, but we also saw Glumičić recently. We haven't quite pulled the trigger on which surgeon we're actually going with yet.🙂

slymoose95 said:Honestly, even then it’s fine. 🙂 I hit that brutal heatwave back in May, but I managed to power through it... besides, who are you actually going to end up choosing?

Believe it or not, I still haven't made up my mind. 😂 Should I go with Ostojić, Tončić, or Bastajić? I am genuinely torn... 🤷

I think it’ll finally click once I actually sit down and talk to them face-to-face. As far as the emails go, they were all super helpful and responded really nicely, though their vibes were pretty different from one another. Once I get them in front of me and let them walk me through everything in detail, I’ll just go with whichever one feels right. 🙂

Melissa Ward29 said:George Robinson58
I'm new here, and since we're dealing with the exact same issue, could you please send me the details regarding the nose revision?
Thanks
Thomas Alvarez5

Shoot me a PM and I'll give you the full rundown...
For what it's worth, the second surgery went great and I'm actually really happy with how things turned out.👍

Jamie Ruiz said:Thanks for the response. Here is my situation: my 17-year-old son has decided he wants to get a nose job this year. I’m fully behind him on this decision. He has an appointment scheduled with Joe next week, but we also met with Glumičić recently, so we haven't quite made up our minds yet on which surgeon we're going to go with.🙂

I've heard nothing but glowing reviews about Dr. Mladin, so I honestly think you can't go wrong with him. As for Glumičić, people are saying all sorts of things—some good, some bad—so I'd say it's probably wiser to stick with the sure thing.😉

Dana Alvarez said:I've heard nothing but glowing reviews about Dr. Mladin, so I’m pretty sure you can't go wrong with him. As for Glumičić, people are saying just about everything—good, bad, you name it. Honestly? It’s probably better to play it safe and stick with the sure thing.😉

I’m stuck in a bit of a dilemma right now. I'll have to wait until Joe has an opening for the surgery, but Glumičić already scheduled us for late June. Honestly, if this were just about me, I wouldn't be overthinking it this much, but we're talking about my kid. When it comes to their health, you really have to be certain about whose hands you're leaving them in.😉

Kimberly Baker13 said:It would be helpful for everyone if you could just name this "particular individual"... 🙂

Here is the reality of the situation—it involves Dr. Ostojic, who has been a massive disappointment to me, both as a person and as a physician. My nose is a complete mess, yet he keeps insisting it looks great... the moment the splint was removed, I realized things had gone wrong; specifically, there is a lump remaining on the right side. Furthermore, he completely ignored my actual requests and just did whatever he wanted—he shortened the nose and lifted the tip far too much... way too much! I went back for a follow-up recently, and even he admitted the lump is there, though he’s trying to convince me it can be fixed with fillers on the left side to create symmetry. When I questioned him about the overly lifted tip, his response was simply that this is how he performs rhinoplasties to ensure a "youthful look" in later years... honestly, who is the crazy one here?!

Out of sheer desperation, I decided to seek a consultation with Dr. Gulic (after hearing through the grapevine that her clinic employs top-tier specialists for revision rhinoplasty). Well, what a shocker awaited me there! After examining me and hearing who performed my initial surgery, she told me that many patients from this particular doctor come to her specifically for revisions due to these exact same issues... (she also offers fillers for filling in gaps). She mentioned that the noses always end up looking identical because he shortens them so drastically, and when she opens the nostrils, it's just a total disaster. She confirmed all my suspicions: the residual bump, the excessively high tip, and the extreme shortening... despite the swelling, she warned it might actually look even more upturned once the inflammation goes down... heavens help me! I also showed her my pre-op photos, and she was, to put it mildly, shocked by the catastrophe that resulted from the first surgery...

I could have easily kept this to myself, but it feels like a sin not to issue a warning—let everyone decide for themselves...

That said, I am truly glad to see that some women are thrilled with his work...

Just think very carefully about whose hands you are placing yourself in!!

I hope I haven't offended anyone...