For those of you who’ve heard of it but not really sure what a deviated septum is, here’s your answer! There’s cartilage that runs down the middle of your nose that separates the left nostril and nasal airway from the right nostril and nasal airway. Sometimes your septum deviates, or shifts to one side as you’re growing up, closing off or narrowing one of the nasal airways, leading to difficulty breathing.
Techniques for Correcting a Deviated Septum
There are different surgical techniques that allow your plastic surgeon to remove the deviated part of the septum so that it no longer obstructs your airway or you can sort of “bend” it back into position. Regardless of technique, the deviation can come back in certain situations.
If you’re having trouble breathing and you’re in your teens, you can get a rhinoplasty to correct your deviation. But since you’re still growing, it’s possible that your deviation can return as your cartilage continues to grow. That’s one possibility. Even if you get surgery while you’re an adult and you’ve already stopped growing, the septum can deviate again if it wasn’t aggressively fixed the first time.
As I alluded to above, when you try and bend it back into position, it can look great. But over time, it may warp back into the original position, thus requiring a second operation. Since one technique didn’t work in the first operation, it may be a good idea to confirm that your doctor will use another technique this go round.
Due to this risk of warping, I always use the technique of removing the deviated portion of the septum rather than trying to bend it like Beckham! No technique is without its risks so be sure and discuss with your doctor during the consultation. And if you’re looking for Dr. Kaplan’s pricing on rhinoplasty, click here.
Click here for the original blog post written by Dr. Jonathan Kaplan for BuildMyBod.
