Asian nose job

[Flame]

Hi Sandy816,

I completely understand where you are coming from. I also currently have a silicone implant that sits too high up my forehead and looks very fake from my side profile. Even worse, mine was put in 15 years ago (also when I was very very young and naive) and L-shaped (the WORST kind of silicone to get apparently)!

As for your decision, the advice I would give to you after much research... PLEASE take note that what I will write is very subjective (data gathered by my own readings...and should not be considered "medical facts"):

-SILICONE: ADVANTAGES: can achieve a higher bridge than goretex (if you have a very very low bridge) and can look very natural if placed properly; costs less than other implants; easy to take out and revise if you don't like it in the future
DISADVANTAGES: over long term, can cause redness of skin, thinning of aging skin can cause a "shrink wrap" effect (I know you are still young now but you gotta consider how your nose will look when you are old); can show "pinkish" tinge when you are in bright sunlight in your profile view (most people might not notice or care: I notice because I've come to recognize other noses with silicone implants); can move and extrude

GORETEX: ADVANTAGE: can blend very nicely with nose and look very natural (especially if the sheets are used); may not achieve a high bridge
DISADVANTAGE: can give "whitish" appearance to skin of nose where implant is; can become infected or displaced; natural tissues will grow into it and harder to take out later

MEDPOR: ADVANTAGE: can create a strong bridge
DISADVANTAGE: hard to take out later: tissues will grow and bond to it; I personally don't think they are soft enough to feel natural (got to handle one during an in-office consult)

RIB/EAR CARTILAGE: ADVANTAGE: lowest rate of infection or rejection by body; can achieve very natural results
DISADVANTAGE: can warp or curl or displace or get reabsorbed by body

ALSO, another word about L-shaped silicone implants: DEFINITELY AVOID: 100% will extrude within 15 yrs (I got lucky) according to one Beverly Hills doc; apparently I-shaped ones are much safer
-choose a surgeon that will listen to you and give you lots of time to consult and will respond to your questions
-choose a surgeon with expertise in the implant you choose; the various surgeons will have specialised in certain materials
-read a lot of forums for what other people are saying and you will find lots of "popular" surgeons names and what research people are finding about their personalities or experiences
-choose a surgeon close to you so you can travel to this person after your surgery in case there are complications like swelling,displacement, infection, post-op manipulations that you may need to perform to keep swelling down, etc. (I didn't have much choice in this since I live on a little Island and EVERYTHING is considered "overseas" for me)

ANYWAY, GOOD LUCK! I agree that you should get your implant revised, the bridge is too high and long. Do it soon while you are still young and can heal quickly!

 

[asin]

flame and sandy,

both of you mentioned having a silicone implant in your nose for a long time (~10 years). what is your opinion on silicone implants? do you feel that it is a safe and reliable material when done correctly (i-shaped implant, placed not too high)? has the appearance of the implant change over the years, such as becoming more shrink wrapped?

i'm considering a revision and i'm still trying to decide what material to use - silicone, gortex, or rib. silicone has been around the longest and is the most commonly used, so i feel like maybe it is the best. also, it is easy to remove if anything goes wrong.

 

[rememberme123]

Hello.. so how's your nose? Has the bridge deswell?

Hi, I'm new to this forum and I wanted some feedback from people who have gotten rhinoplasty. I just got a secondary rhinoplasty using goretex and ear cartilage from Dr. Jung in Korea on June 24th, so it's been almost 4 weeks since my surgery. I went to him because I heard a lot of good stuff about him..basically I had silicone used in my first rhinoplasty and the silicone was starting to show through at my tip and was making my skin very thin,and so had to get it done again. I told him I wanted my bridge raised slightly higher, alar reduction, tip projection, and I just wanted a smaller slimmer pretty nose. But right now, my nose is so long and big. It is not pretty at all. People say I've lost my babyface and look old now. All I can see on my face is my nose, and it looks really bad. I can't believe he made it this long. I look so weird, and don't even look Asian anymore. Does anyone know if the length will shrink as well as the height? I really regret having my nose done again now, and am considering revision. I really wanted this to be the last time.

 

[Flame]

Hi asin,

I do find that now I can "see" my silicone implant in that the skin around is a bit pink. Also, when I am standing in direct sunlight, it has a pinkish see-through look where it sits on my bridge. As you age, your skin will shrink wrap around it... but perhaps this happens with all implants??? Not sure about this.

The I-shaped implants do seem very safe in terms of extrusion. I don't know much about goretex... maybe you can ask a doc that uses both and get his/her expert medical opinion on both.

Good luck! Why are you thinking of revision? How long have you had yours?

 

[asin]

hi flame,

wow, i never thought that the skin around the implant would be pink. is this due to pain or swelling? or is it just the outline of the implant? is the implant itself pink? when did you start noticing the area being pink?

i used to have an i-shaped implant with ear cartilage to the tip, but i took it out after having it in for 6 weeks. it looked very high and unnatural, and it was also slanted. it's been about 7 months since i took the implant out, and my bridge is now wide and blob-ish due to the scar tissue. i'm looking into a revision, possibly with conservative nasal augmentation again, and i can't decide what material to use.

 

[Flame]

hi asin,

The pink skin thing is something that only silcone implants cause. I think it's called "erythema". I only noticed it after 10 years or so (now been 15 years). Easy to cover up with make-up when you are a girl. Not painful and no swelling. I do see the outline of the implant too (especially b/w my eyes) and it's always looked like this because like yours, mine was put in too high but at the time, I was only in my teens and was too scared to ask to get it out and didn't know any better.

My personal opinion, autologous tissue will always look more natural... especially if you don't want much augmentation, some docs are good at putting the ear cartilage in the bridge without it warping (or so they say) but perhaps if you choose to go that route, pick surgeon close to you so you can go back and get it revised for free if it does warp.

 

[Flame]

Hey everyone,

I know there's been a few of you who flew overseas to have your surgery... can some of you please tell me how long your flight was and whether you would advise against taking such a long flight after nose surgery? Did you heal well? How long did you stay in that country before flying back home?

I am getting VERY worried about flying a long flight after my surgery and would like some advice...

Thanks in advance!

 

[PRETTY-PLEASE]

@ FLAME:
I came onto this forum on the advice of a lady on Dr. Shah's staff who suggested online forums... because a trusted friend of mine (a BEST !) is starting to make me really worried about this whole ordeal... She's very untrusting of this whole thing and kind of blew up on me for giving my credit card info online and everything... and well, I'll spare the rest of the "argument's" details for now, haha... But it does mean I'm so damn nervous now too 'cause she's always been... smarter than me, haha. And actually,john1 's posts kind of add to it too, in a different way - and have me worried, but I thank him for trying to keep people informed. My friend's concerns are more about my personal safety and stuff like that.

The lady in the office said she was going to forward me contact info for a former patient of Dr. Shah's, but I guess it got busy in the office because I haven't yet recieved anything.

When is your surgery date? Mine is booked for late August. I would like to keep in touch with you because I will be flying into Chicago for the procedure too (not from US), and staying for 1 week in the city... Please PM me and we can communicate by e-mail or Skype or something and keep eachother posted... I am so worried and nervous now.

Hi rememberme123,

Thanks for your helpful suggestions. I did ask him for more pics. He said he will ask his patients for permission. But that was only 1 week ago so perhaps he hasn't had time. After reading your post, I sent him a reminder email for the pics.

Dr. Shah was very very patient with all my questions too... I think I sent him 3 emails with lists of questions and he answered each email within 24 hrs. That was a big part of why I decided to go with him... he never made me feel like he was "too important" or "too busy" for questions. I figured that at least he will listen to what I want and give me the nose I want.

I am just getting nervous now about his experience. He seems so young! I read that rib cartilage implants are very technique-specific and the surgeon MUST have lots of experience to carve it properly. I don't want to end up with a warped or big fat nose since I live so far away!

Yes, I did pay a downpayment so even more nervous about my decision!

 

[jleex02]

you pretty much got the same procedures i did except i got silicone instead of goretex.

i will only tell you that i, as well as other posters who got bridge implants, went thru a similar freak out phase and everything turned out ok for us.

some thots:
1. your bridge takes anywhere form 2-6 weeks to noticeably drop. i assume this was the case after your 1st surgery?
2. you should ask your surgeon how thick was the implant that way you will know how much height is added when the swelling is gone.
3. you should also ask how high up he put the implant
4. since this is ur 2nd procedure you should have a pretty good idea how quickly you heal and how much swelling you have left and can gauge how close to final it is. but i would save the worry until you get to week 6.
5. i heard its not good to have a revision so soon as there is increased risk of infection which would be even worse. you probably have to wait 6 months for a revision unless you just want to get the goretex removed. but i would just give it more time since you made it this far.
6. dont play with your nose as that will only delay healing. put warm compresses on a few times a day to help speed the deswelling.

ultimately talk to your surgeon and express your concerns. if he is a good surgeon like you say then he probably did a good job and you are just swollen.

best of luck!

hey john~ thanks for the advice! it made me feel a bit better because at the time i was just freaking out about my humongous nose. i emailed the surgeon about the height of my implant and am still waiting to hear back on that. and i've been using warm compresses again and it seems to have helped..im just praying that the swelling will continue subsiding as time goes by. Also..do you know if your surgeon.(Dr. Charles Lee) is skilled at revision surgery?? Did your alar base reduction make a substantial difference? b/c mine did not. I was thinking of switching from Gore tex back to silicone bc I like how silicone gives the nose a slimmer look. The Gore tex seriously widened my nose so much.

to rememberme123: thanks for asking~ my swelling has gone down somewhat..i am now at the end of 4 weeks post-op. the bridge seems to have settled a little, and it does not look as high from the side. I seriously looked like an elephant in the beginning. -_- My main concern though is the length b/c my nose now takes up the majority of my face..also my new nose is more bulbous than my first nose. (exact opposite of what i wanted)

I have linked a pic of my nose...for ppl who have had nose jobs already...does it look like I have more swelling? Or am I stuck with this huge fat nose? Please let me know what you guys think. Thanks in advance.

http://i684.photobucket.com/albums/vv210/jleex02/nose1.jpg

 

[john1]

glad your nose is less swollen. did you get an L-shaped silicone implant the first time?

from your pic tho its hard to tell it seems to me you are still swollen so i would think in a few weeks you will be more happy with the results. your tip is the last to get definition (deswell) as the water all gets trapped there. it takes a while, up to 3 months i hear. tip work shouldnt result in a bulbous nose as they are not adding cartilage, just creating a strut so its probably just swelling from all the implants going in and out and water getting trapped.

i am extremely happy with my alar reduction. dr lee just nailed it! it made a huge difference. i dont know how many revisions he does but its not like you have a major revision, it would only be swapping out implants, no real reconstruction. but i think the minimum time you have to wait is 6 months. but i have a feeling by that time you will be more happy.

and i am really happy with the silicone. i got an I-shaped silicone. its got this nice sleek look and the ridge of my nose is even like a peak. its cool how the skin wraps around it. i just know that silicone in the future may have problems, but then again it may not. and because goretex is porous i imagine it would take longer for the swelling to go down as water gets trapped in the goretex.

believe me, a few weeks ago i was freaking out and was seriously considering a revision, not because i was unhappy with my bridge but because i was concerned about its affect on the epicanthoplasty i had, making it look stretched out. but dr lee told me it was just swelling. but i was feeling my nose and couldnt detect any swelling. i was sure it wasnt swelling. but sure enough, he was right. a few days later i notice my nose getting even more settled and the skin loosening, and it looked great. i was even picked up by this really hot caucasian woman a week later at a restaurant (never happened before ever!). moral is, you are swollen even when you dont think you are and just need to be patient.

whats even funnier is that i have been around like 15 aunts uncles and cousins plus my mom the past few days for the first time since surgery and no one has noticed (at least they have not said anything or given me funny stares). so between that and the hot woman, i figure i look a lot better but still natural which is what i had asked for.

best of luck with everything and just give it time.

 

[john1]

@ FLAME:
I came onto this forum on the advice of a lady on Dr. Shah's staff who suggested online forums... because a trusted friend of mine (a BEST !) is starting to make me really worried about this whole ordeal... She's very untrusting of this whole thing and kind of blew up on me for giving my credit card info online and everything... and well, I'll spare the rest of the "argument's" details for now, haha... But it does mean I'm so damn nervous now too 'cause she's always been... smarter than me, haha. And actually,john1 's posts kind of add to it too, in a different way - and have me worried, but I thank him for trying to keep people informed. My friend's concerns are more about my personal safety and stuff like that.

The lady in the office said she was going to forward me contact info for a former patient of Dr. Shah's, but I guess it got busy in the office because I haven't yet recieved anything.

When is your surgery date? Mine is booked for late August. I would like to keep in touch with you because I will be flying into Chicago for the procedure too (not from US), and staying for 1 week in the city... Please PM me and we can communicate by e-mail or Skype or something and keep eachother posted... I am so worried and nervous now.

if you havent seen this yet, heres a discussion thread on shah. mostly positives with some skeptics. which pretty much sums it up.

Nose Surgery, Nose Job, Rhinoplasty Message Boards - Dr. Anil Shah in Chicago/NY reviews? Opinions? - Plastic Surgery, Cosmetic, Forums, Chats

 

[Flame]

Hi Pretty-Please,

In case you didn't get the pm... I sent you a msg but I think because you came to this site as a visitor, the link might not have worked...

Please pm me (click on my name on the post and it should provide you with a "send private message" link) because YES, I would love to chat with you too.

We can trade info and support! That's what these forums are for! I am in the same boat as you... flying in to Chicago. How long is your flight?

Oh! As for John1's posts, thank you! You are indeed helpful. HOWEVER, that MD rating was posted only 1 day after I announced that I was going to have surgery with Shah so I am HIGHLY suspicious of its authenticity. Whoever that person was, I think it was done in a mean-spirited way... most likely works for Shah's competition. If I was a person who had "bad" surgery outcomes with a doc, I would give a LOT more details (like other people have done on this forum) ... for example, the guy who created a whole blog to deter people from going to see that famous revisionist in Texas (don't want to mention any names and add to hype since who really knows what and how things went wrong)...not just a one line sentence!

I think we all have to realise that even with the most skilled surgical techniques, each of us have to deal with our own body's natural reactions and healing properties.... so yeah, things can go wrong but we can't always place the blame on the surgeon!

What I'm really concerned about is post-op complications and being so far away from my surgeon... even if he is VERY talented.

So.... please , ANYONE who's been overseas for an implant, give me details on how your flight went post-op and did anything go wrong and did you get help? Will another surgeon try to help me tape my nose if my implant or cartilages start moving?

 

[tl7317]

Hi jennified,

I'm thinking about going to Korea on Aug 7th to shop around for a plastic surgeon for my rhino and blep. I was having so much doubts until i saw ur posts since I don't speak Korean. let me know if u are interested to go together.

 

[tl7317]

I'm new to the forum. Could someone please tell me how to pm someone? is there a post requirement? thx

 

[PRETTY-PLEASE]

@ FLAME,

Unfortunately, due to a policy enacted because of spammers or something, I can't pm until I've posted 5 times and 5 days have gone by ...

Meanwhile, I'm getting even more nervous, hahaha...

You can email me: [email protected] !!! Can't wait to talk with you!

@ john1,

Thank you! I hadn't read through that one yet... I'm still so worried 'cause my friend's more worried about my safety etc. (She's actually pretty much background-checking him >_<, LOL! And she's worried 'cause of a few things or something >_<!) She's protective of me (and smarter usually, LOL!) so I don't know what to do...!