Abstract
Most Latin American patients looking to have a primary septorhinoplasty share common
characteristics in relation to an incorrect projection of the nasal tip complex and
a low dorsal line. Thus, the frequent use of structural techniques and of surgical
enhancement techniques becomes necessary to improve the nasal contour. In cases of
secondary septorhinoplasty, it is also usual in our practice not to have sufficient
septal cartilage available or with the required quality to give structure and support
to the nasal tip complex, handle the nasal dorsum, and simultaneously correct postseptorhinoplasty
deformities. For these reasons, in our practice costal cartilage represents an excellent
option as autologous graft material. We present our experience using autologous costal
cartilage for structural and nonstructural purposes in 286 selected patients who underwent
open rhinoplasty between 2004 and 2011. We emphasize preoperative analyses, we discuss
the criteria for selecting costal graft as graft material, we show key aspects of
the dynamic of the surgery, and we consider the possibility of using autologous costal
graft in combination with heterologous grafts. In this work we also establish the
disadvantages of costal cartilage as graft material in specific areas of the surgical
anatomy of the nose.
Keywords
septorhinoplasty - mestizo nose - costal cartilage