Surgery
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Septorhinoplasty (Nose Surgery)
When?
Not all people born with a cleft go on to have nose surgery. When it happens, it is in the late teenage years or early adulthood. If jaw surgery (orthognathic surgery) is planned too, this operation should happen afterwards.
Why?
This operation can help you breathe more easily through your nose, or change how your nose looks. Having a cleft lip can change the shape of your nose, and if there is something about it you do not like, surgery can sometimes change that. Surgery is not always the right answer though, so it helps to know clearly what you would like to change before you talk to your cleft surgeon about nose surgery.
How?
You will be asleep for this operation. We make some small cuts inside your nostrils and at the base of your nose. We then use different techniques to reshape the cartilage (the firm, bendy tissue) in your nose. This can include stitching or moving the cartilage. Sometimes we use donor cartilage, which has been carefully cleaned and processed, if extra cartilage is needed.
How does the decision-making process work?
- We won’t offer this surgery if it is something you do not want.
- We will see you in clinic and discuss what might be achieved with surgery.
- We may ask you to see our psychology team to talk about what you hope the operation will achieve. This can help us understand together whether this operation is the right one for you.
What will happen if I go ahead with surgery?
- We will tell you when to stop eating and drinking before the operation.
- If you are being treated in Manchester, you will come to (location)
- If you are being treated in Liverpool, you will come to (location)
- You will go home on the same day as your operation
Aftercare
You will have a dressing (bandage) on your nose after the operation. This stays on until your surgeon checks you again. Sometimes you will have gauze ‘nasal packs’ in your nose for the first week after surgery.
We will give you painkillers to take home after the operation.
Please do not blow your nose for 2 weeks after the operation.
Avoid contact sports for at least 6 weeks.
What are the risks?
Your nose is usually quite swollen after this operation, and the swelling can spread to your eyes too. Most of the swelling goes down in the first 3 weeks, but some can last several months.
The scars are usually hard to notice, but can sometimes be red and lumpy.
This is not common, and is usually treated with antibiotic tablets.
Sometimes swelling or scarring can block the nose. This is called ‘nasal obstruction’ and can be permanent.
No nose is perfectly even, and yours will not be either after this operation. But if asymmetry was a problem for you before, we hope this will be better after surgery.
This is a small hole that connects your two nostrils in the middle.