Can aesthetic nose surgery be performed on an aging face?

What are the differences compared to the younger age group?

Is there an age limit?

At what age can it be performed at the latest?

Are there any additional risks? 

The majority of our rhinoplasty candidate patients are under the age of 25. However, we also perform these surgeries for middle-aged and aging patients. Let me give the answer from the beginning, age alone is not an obstacle for rhinoplasty surgery. 

However, rhinoplasty is an operation that has its own nuances not only in different age groups, but also in different facial structures, different nose structures and different races. 

Interestingly, studies on individuals over the age of 50 who underwent rhinoplasty have shown that although rhinoplasty surgery is not actually a rejuvenation procedure, the perceived age of the patients is 5-6 years younger. The reason for this is that large and especially thick-skinned noses are a feature that older people share more often. 

Generally, the scenario is as follows;

The patient has been dissatisfied with his nose since his 20s and has always wanted to have it done. But that's life; years pass by when school, work and children come up. Sometimes rhinoplasty candidates may have to postpone these surgeries for many years due to financial impossibilities. I have not met young lawyers and young physicians who brought their mothers to surgery.

Whether the rhinoplasty candidate is 20 years old or 50 years old, the excitement of the surgery is the same. However, we cannot say the same for the reaction of the environment. As you know, we are a society that has difficulty in adjusting the distance.  

While young girls often come with the support of their families, among the relatives of middle-aged patients, there is definitely someone who says "you have lived with this nose until this age, what is the need to change it now". A kind of neighborhood pressure...

However, I emphasize once again that age alone is not an obstacle in rhinoplasty. 

 

 

Now let's review the special conditions in the advanced age group.

In patients over middle age, the skin is a little thinner and looser. If the nasal bone skeleton shrinks too much in patients over the age of forty, it may not be possible for this skin to shrink and shrink enough to adapt to the underlying skeleton. Therefore, we should not aim for very petite noses. 

Another issue is about nasal aging. As people age, the wings of the nose rise and the tip of the nose falls. The natural connective tissue suspension system of the nose loosens. For this reason, it will be risky to base the nasal support on these ligaments in patients over middle age. For this reason, I always prefer structural rhinoplasty in the middle-aged and older patient group. The nose becomes hard, but the tip does not fall again during the aging process. Again, we almost always use alar rim grafts that support the wings in middle-aged patients.

In the middle-aged group, especially in patients with a very high nasal arch, it is necessary to avoid lowering the arch too much. The arch holds the skin taut like the pole of a tent. If you lower this arch aggressively, the nasal skin can spread towards the cheeks and upper eyelids. 

For these reasons, it is very important to design the nose in the middle-aged and older patient group by considering the special conditions I mentioned above. 

Another issue that preoccupies the minds of candidate patients is whether the healing process after nose surgery will be prolonged due to age. As a general rule, it does not. However, since the skin is loose, micro bleeding in the tissue can travel a little further. We see postoperative bruising a little more frequently in middle-aged patients.

In the advanced age category, there are some differences between men and women in terms of skin structure. In women, cartilage development can continue at advanced ages and nasal tip cartilages can grow. This situation does not encourage a problem for the operation. In male patients, the skin can grow and thicken. This condition, which we call rhinophyma, can be an obstacle for surgery.

If patients in the advanced age group have breathing problems, the surgery is already out of aesthetic purposes and gains a medical indication.

Finally, I would like to emphasize the importance of evaluating rhinoplasty surgery together with other aesthetic problems in the advanced age group. For example, if there is a very prominent age-related eyelid deformity, very prominent under-eye deformity or advanced facial aging, it may be more logical to give priority to rejuvenation surgery. After all, people undergo all plastic surgeries to look good and be happy. When you use the same money and time for another procedure, it is our obligation to inform you about a result that you may be happier with. 

I rarely ask my patients who apply for nose surgery, "Wouldn't you consider starting aesthetic treatment with a facial rejuvenation surgery?". 

You can contact us for more detailed information about rhinoplasty surgery in the aging process of the face.

Stay with love,

Nice thick

OB