Comparative Effectiveness of Cartilage Grafts in Functional Rhinoplasty for Nasal Sidewall Collapse.

Objective

To compare the patient-reported outcomes among patients with nasal obstruction undergoing two rhinoplasty techniques to a control group.

Methods

Prospective longitudinal study in a university-based tertiary care medical center. All patients undergoing functional septorhinoplasty for correction of lateral wall insufficiency between October 2015 and March 2019 were included; n = 704, mean age (standard deviation) 39.0 (15.4) years, 52.7% females. Patients completed the Nasal Obstruction Symptom Evaluation (NOSE) and FACE-Q subscales pre- and postoperatively. Patients were divided into three cohorts: spreader and lateral crural strut (LCS) grafts (n = 141), spreader and alar rim (AR) grafts (n = 104), and the control spreader grafts alone (n = 218).

Results

The median NOSE scores at last postoperative visit were improved from baseline (p < 0.001) for all cohorts. The FACE-Q nasal satisfaction median scores also improved postoperatively in all cohorts, AR, LCS, and spreader, respectively (p = 0.001, p < 0.001, and p < 0.0001).

Conclusions

There was no detectable difference in the improved subjective nasal function, nor adverse aesthetic outcomes in the patients with lateral wall insufficiency treated with functional rhinoplasty techniques in this study.