One-Year Review After DCF Revision Rhinoplasty for Nasal Contracture > Real Selfies | RU Plastic Surgery

  


 
Before / 1y post-op

It has now been one year since my revision rhinoplasty for nasal contracture.

One of my biggest concerns was the nasal bridge. For my surgery, diced autologous rib cartilage was wrapped in fascia and used to reconstruct the bridge in a way that provided the shape and volume I needed without relying on a conventional implant.

I was told from the beginning that this technique could take longer to settle because both postoperative swelling and changes within the graft would continue over time.

Looking back, I can really see what that meant.

Compared with the six-month stage, the front view of my nose now looks noticeably slimmer and more refined after a full year of healing.

To be honest, during the first few months after revision surgery, there were some areas I liked and others I still felt uncertain about.

However, as the nose continued to settle over the course of the year, many of those concerns gradually disappeared.

Now that the recovery has progressed this far, I am extremely satisfied with the overall result.

Before revision surgery, my columella was significantly recessed, and I was constantly self-conscious when talking to other people because I felt as though they might be looking at my nose.

I often wore a mask because of that insecurity, and it affected my daily life more than I expected.

Now, the columella has been restored to a much more natural position, and I no longer feel stressed when speaking to someone face-to-face.

That sense of relief has honestly been one of the most meaningful changes for me.

The scar at the autologous rib cartilage donor site has also continued to improve.

After around five months, the redness gradually began to fade, and I received additional care for the scar and postoperative scar tissue during my six-month follow-up.

Now, at the one-year mark, the donor-site scar has become very difficult to notice.

The scar tissue around the side of the nasal bridge has also improved considerably, and I feel that this has helped the nose look even slimmer and more refined.

Before surgery, I often wondered whether it would really be possible to achieve the sophisticated shape I wanted—a profile somewhere between straight and softly curved—given the condition of my contracted nose.

Now that a full year has passed and the swelling has largely settled, the result looks very close to the shape I had hoped for.

I am genuinely happy every time I look in the mirror.

Even when taking selfies, I no longer feel the need to hold my phone at a specific angle to hide my nose, which still feels like a huge change for me.

My surgery with Dr. Hyunju Kim included autologous rib cartilage for the nasal tip, diced rib cartilage with fascia for the nasal bridge, short nose correction, and columellar reconstruction.

After going through such a long recovery, I have realized how much time can affect the final result of complex revision rhinoplasty.

At the one-year mark, I am even more satisfied than I was at six months and feel very grateful for how naturally everything has settled.