Does Rhinoplasty Reduce Nasal Patency?

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of rhinoplasty on subjective and objective assessment of nasal patency in patients who underwent rhinoplasty for cosmetic reasons only. Setting: Tertiary referral center. Design: Prospective, clinical study. Subject and Methods: A total of 50 adult patients who underwent rhinoplasty were included in the study. Preoperative and postoperative photographs of the nasal profile (frontal, lateral, and oblique) were obtained. The visual analog scale (VAS) was used for the subjective evaluation of nasal obstruction (0 being the minimum, 10 being the maximum amount of nasal patency). Objective evaluation of nasal obstruction was performed with a peak nasal inspiratory flowmeter (PNIF). Results: Preoperative mean VAS scores and PNIF values of the patients were 7.36 ± 0.83 and 115.10 ± 17.45, respectively. Postoperative mean VAS scores and PNIF values of the patients were 7.42 ± 0.73 and 115.30 ± 16.7, respectively. There was no statistically significant difference between any of the pre- and postoperative subjective and objective parameters ( P > .05). Conclusion: Reduction rhinoplasty has been shown not to reduce nasal patency.