As much research as I do on the topic of plastic surgery and non-invasive alternatives to surgery, I was surprised recently to learn of the existence of non-surgical rhinoplasty. I write all the time about injectable dermal fillers, but until recently, it had never occurred to me that they could or would be used for sculpting the nose.
I have never made a secret of the fact that I have had a nose job. In fact, if I hadn't, I would probably not have ever come to be your About.com Guide to Plastic Surgery. And though I have been happy with my results for (gulp) twenty years now, there are a few asymmetries and contour irregularities that bother me sometimes. I have never thought it would be worth it to have surgery again for such small matters, and I understand that perfection is an unrealistic expectation. However, now that I know about non-surgical rhinoplasty (also called injection rhinoplasty, non surgical nose job, or 15 minute nose job), I have something to think about.
I recently spoke with 2 different facial plastic surgeons who perform this procedure in the Los Angeles area: Robert Kotler, MD, and Alexander Rivkin, MD. (Dr. Kotler's patient is shown in the photo above.) Though they use different filler materials -- Dr. Kotler prefers silicone while Dr. Rivkin uses mostly other non-surgical rhinoplasty fillers like Radiesse and Artefill -- the techniques are very similar, and the results can be quite impressive.
Both doctors agree on one very important point: If you are considering non-surgical rhinoplasty, it is of paramount importance that you choose a doctor who is very experienced in the technique. One or two millimeters "off" in any direction can be very noticeable on a feature as central to the appearance as the nose.
Learn more about non-surgical rhinoplasty.
See plastic surgery before and after photos.
