Prevalence of Self-photography in Patients Presenting for Primary Aesthetic Rhinoplasty

Abstract

Introduction: Habitual self-photographs or selfies have been anecdotally associated with patients presenting for cosmetic rhinoplasty. Our objective was to establish the prevalence of self-photography in patients presenting for aesthetic rhinoplasty. Secondary objective was to determine if presenting nasal concerns have changed since taking selfies became widely accepted in 2013. Methods: Demographic data, referral source, and nasal concerns were retrospectively collected for 100 consecutive patients seeking cosmetic rhinoplasty consultations in 2018 and 2012. Revision cases were excluded. A voluntary, paper-based survey was used to capture the frequency of self-photography during the initial consultation in 2018. Results: One hundred consecutive patients were included from January through September of 2018. Out of 92 survey respondents, 80.4% admitted to taking selfies. Patients engaging in self-photography less than once per month composed 23.9%, followed by weekly in 21.7% and daily in 20.7% of survey respondents. A 17% increase in Internet-sourced patient referrals was observed in 2018. The top 3 nasal complaints in the 2018 cohort were tip-related followed by hump and big nose. Whereas the 2012 cohort was mostly concerned with hump, tip shape, and nasal obstruction. Conclusions: Most patients seeking primary cosmetic rhinoplasty engage in self-photography. Monitoring changes in the patterns of referrals and patient’s aesthetic concerns about nasal appearance are important for rhinoplasty surgeons as their practice evolves to integrate social networking and Internet-based communications. Level of Evidence: III