Rhinoplasty to Correct Nasal Valve Collapse

We often encounter patients for whom the primary concern is breathing well through their nose, rather than the way they look. In these cases, the rhinoplasty procedure may be more “reconstructive” than cosmetic; however, the two can also go hand in hand, as in the following patient.

This patient complained of difficulty breathing through his nose, especially the right side. On exam, you can see that when he breathes in through his nose, the right side collapses shut. This is called “external valve collapse,” and can be congenital (the person is born with it) or the result of prior excessive surgery.

To fix this patient’s breathing problem, a septoplasty was performed to straighten the cartilage inside his nose, and the “extra” cartilage from his septum was grafted to add support to the areas of collapse (this is similar to the way battens help to support the sail of a ship). This, along with some minor cosmetic work on his tip produced a dramatic improvement in his breathing, as well improving the “pinched” appearance of his nose.