Tomorrow evening, Tuesday, May 1, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics is hosting a free seminar to learn more about plastic surgery - specifically, rhinoplasty (the nose). Grant Hamilton, MD, board-certified, fellowship-trained facial plastic surgeon at UI Hospitals and Clinics, talks about rhinoplasty:
Can any plastic surgeon do surgery on a nose or a rhinoplasty procedure?
Absolutely, however, if you ask most plastic surgeons, they would say rhinoplasty is one of the more challenging operations that we do. My recommendation to patients is to find someone who spends a large portion of their practice performing rhinoplasty and that it's not just an occasional surgery for them.
Why is it important for someone thinking about changing the look of their nose to see a person like you who is board certified in facial plastic surgery ?
Board certification is important but fellowship training is also important, because it is indicative of optional, post-graduate training available after the residency. Most people don't do that. It's a concentrated, extra study strictly in the field of facial plastic and reconstructive surgery.
Do patients come to see you strictly for plastic surgery to change the look of their nose, or are there medical conditions that also can be treated by rhinoplasty surgery?
People see me for both purposes. Sometimes people will have a concern about a bump on the nose and their breathing is fine. But often, a nose that doesn't look quite right also doesn't work quite right. So there's usually a functional component as well as an aesthetic component and people will have concerns about both. We try to balance those concerns when planning the surgery.
How is your approach to rhinoplasty different/better from others?
Rhinoplasty is a modern operation; it's only about 100 years old. It was shrouded in a lot of secrecy for the first 70 or 80 years, and unfortunately there wasn't a free exchange of information. The techniques that were developed early on focused on removing tissue, trimming cartilage, making noses smaller.
In some patients, that's fine, unfortunately, that is a way to weaken the nose. You can't make something stronger by taking tissue away. And, unfortunately, those techniques often have detrimental affects on the breathing and maybe people are fine for six months; but maybe a year or two later they start to have a little bit of difficulty with breathing through their nose.
My approach is a little bit different in that I emphasize the structure and will reinforce the nose and make it stronger than it was before the patient came to see me. And that way I cannot only change the shape of the nose, but I can ensure that they'll have a good, long-lasting breathing result that will withstand the rest of their lives.
At what age can someone consider a rhinoplasty procedure?
The youngest age that's usually appropriate tends to fall around the 16 year mark. It has less to do with age and has more to do with being finished growing. One of the more important questions, though it may sound silly, I'll ask the patients if their shoe size has been stable for the last six months or a year, because that would indicate that they're probably done growing. So 16 tends to be about the youngest age that someone would be a good candidate.
If someone considering rhinoplasty what things should they be looking for in their plastic surgeon?
One of the things I alluded to earlier--training specifically in facial plastic surgery. Also, that their practice is made up largely of rhinoplasty, specifically if that's what you're interested in.
But most importantly, when you meet with your surgeon, you should have a real clear idea of what the surgical plan is at the end of the consultation. It's frustrating for me to meet with patients and they say that they've been to some other surgeons and say, "You know they told me they were going to fix this and fix that but I didn't really know what they were going to do."
I want my patients to really be just as much a participant in things as I am, and not so much just a passenger. You should feel comfortable with your surgeon and you should feel comfortable with the surgical plan. Find someone who will explain things to you and answer your questions. Looking at some pictures of previous results can also be helpful just to give you an idea of the sort of esthetic that that surgeon has.
Tell us a little more about tomorrow night's event. Where is it? What time?
We thought that it would be good to have an educational seminar about rhinoplasty because I found in meeting with patients that there's a lot of misinformation. I don't know if it's because of reality TV shows, or fashion magazines, or where it's coming from, but I find that patients who are a little bit more sophisticated and know more about it often do better.
So we thought that we'd have an educational seminar to talk strictly about rhinoplasty. It's going to be held at the Hotel Vetro at 201 S. Linn Street in Iowa City, and it will go from approximately from 6 to 7:30 p.m., depending on how many questions people have. We'll have some hors' douvres and some beverages. If people are interested, they can call 800-777-8442 to register. There's no cost to register, and if you decide to just pop in - that's fine too.
What should someone expect to learn if they attend this seminar?
I hope that they would learn how the form and the function of the nose are intertwined. They can also expect to learn the answers to some of the more common questions that patients have, such as what the recovery time is like and what's actually involved in the surgery. I'll walk them through what a typical consultation involves, and try to make them a little bit more sophisticated in their understanding.
Will there be a time to ask you questions at the end of the seminar?
Oh, absolutely. I hope that that's even the bulk of the seminar. I'll have kind of a semi-formal presentation at the beginning where I try to address some of the more common questions, but the best part about the format is that by being a small group, people can ask questions and we'll try to get everything answered.
There is no cost to attend, but should interested people register to attend?
Yes, call 800-777-8442.
For more information about UI Facial Plastic Surgery, call 319-356-3600 or e-mail |
