Open Rhinoplasty Turkey

Most people who end up having open rhinoplasty in Turkey didn't ask for it by name. They asked about a drooping tip, or a nose that's been crooked since a rugby match, and the surgeon came back and said the same thing: to fix this properly, I need to see it. That's the whole case for the open approach. If your nose job involves rebuilding the tip, or straightening a nose that's been bent for years, expect your surgeon to suggest it.

The cost is one small scar under the tip. How surgeons decide between approaches is covered in our main rhinoplasty guide; here we'll stick to what open surgery actually involves.

What happens during an open rhinoplasty

Inside the nostrils, the incisions are the same ones a closed operation would use. The difference is one extra cut on the outside, across the columella, the little bridge of skin between your nostrils. Surgeons rarely make it straight. A zigzag or a small inverted V is more common, since the eye tends to skip over a broken line once it's healed.

Joining the inner and outer cuts frees the skin over the lower nose, so it can be folded back and the surgeon can work on the tip with both sides in view. Afterwards the skin goes back down and the columella is closed with very fine stitches.

Noses that usually need open access

Tips account for most open nose reshaping. Work focused there is often called tip rhinoplasty, and it's the answer for a tip that hangs, one that leans to one side, or the broad, bulbous nose that a lot of people have disliked since school. Shaping those cartilages and stitching them so they stay put is much easier with both in view.

Crooked noses come next. A septum and bridge that have grown or healed off-centre need straightening and then holding straight, which usually means grafts set in exactly the right place, and crooked nose surgery is very often done open for that reason. So is building up a low, flat bridge, which comes up a lot in ethnic rhinoplasty. And second operations are nearly always open, because the scar tissue left by the first one hides the anatomy. The revision rhinoplasty page goes into those.

Grafts: what they are and where they come from

"Graft" sounds dramatic. In a nose it usually means a sliver of cartilage, often smaller than a fingernail. One placed inside the columella can prop up a tip that's sagging. Two thin strips laid along the middle third of the nose, known as spreader grafts, stop the airway collapsing inwards once a hump has been taken down. Tiny pieces can sharpen a tip that looks blobby.

Your own septum is where we look first for that cartilage. When there isn't enough, the next stop is the ear, through a cut hidden behind it; ear cartilage is naturally curved, which happens to suit the tip. The rib is the last resort. Rib cartilage moves an operation onto our €4,000 price. Without it, an open rhinoplasty costs the same as any other first-time nose.

The columella scar: what to expect

People ask about this more than anything else. Your stitches come out at roughly the one-week mark. For a few weeks after that, the line is pink, and anyone peering up from below would spot it. By the end of the year it has usually turned into a thin pale mark sitting in the shadow under the tip, and nobody you meet for coffee is going to see it.

We won't call it invisible, though, because it's permanent. If your skin is darker, or you've had thick, raised scars before, tell us, as the scar may behave differently. And if any scar at all on the outside is a deal-breaker, ask straight out whether closed rhinoplasty could get you the result. For some noses it can.

Why the tip stays swollen longer

When the skin over the tip is lifted, some of the tiny channels that drain fluid away get cut, and they take months to reconnect. Until they do, fluid hangs around in the tip. That's the reason a tip after open surgery stays puffy, a little firm and slightly numb for longer than it would after a closed operation.

What you'll notice in the mirror is a bridge that looks right fairly early on and a tip that keeps changing, subtly, for up to a year, longer still under thick skin. Your surgeon may suggest taping the nose for some weeks to help. If they do, it's worth the effort.

Is open rhinoplasty more painful?

Not really, in our experience. The first few days feel stuffy and pressurised, a bit like the worst cold you've had, and ordinary painkillers usually cover it. Numbness is the bigger surprise for most people. Your tip and upper lip may feel like they've been to the dentist for a few weeks, and the tip can stay a touch less sensitive for months.

Open rhinoplasty after injury or a cleft lip

A good share of open operations aren't purely cosmetic. Say you broke your nose at fifteen. It may well have set with a bend, the bridge off to one side and one nostril half blocked by the septum. Cleft lip noses are similar: the tip is usually uneven and the nostrils don't match. Tell us about any old injury or earlier repair when you write.

How symmetrical can a nose become?

Hardly anyone's face is truly symmetrical, and a nose sits right in the middle of whatever lopsidedness the rest of you has. Open rhinoplasty in Turkey can make a crooked nose far straighter. It won't, however, make your two cheekbones, eyes or jaw halves match. So a slight difference between the nostrils, or a faint lean that follows the angle of your jaw, may still be there afterwards. Better to hear that now.

Skin, blood supply and smoking

Lifting the skin cuts down its blood supply for a while. For most healthy non-smokers that's never a problem. Smokers are the exception. Nicotine tightens the little vessels that keep the skin alive, and occasionally a small area at the tip doesn't heal as it should. That's why we ask for a break from cigarettes and vaping, patches and gum included, both before and after the operation.

Open rhinoplasty and breathing

We'll often straighten a deviated septum (septoplasty) and add spreader grafts to keep the airway open during the same open operation. Neither costs extra. If one side of your nose blocks up, mention it early so it's part of the plan.

When closed would do just as well

Plenty of noses don't need opening. A simple hump on a straight nose, where the tip just wants a little refining, is usually handled perfectly well from inside the nostrils. In those cases the outside cut adds a scar without adding to the result, and we'll say so. Both approaches cost the same here, so there's no reason for us to push you towards one.

Nights in Istanbul for open rhinoplasty

For open rhinoplasty in Istanbul, most patients plan seven to ten nights, one of them in hospital after surgery. At around day seven the nasal cast and the fine stitches in the columella are removed at the same appointment, and we check everything before you're cleared to fly, usually at about ten days. Exact dates go in your written plan.

Open rhinoplasty recovery

You'll probably look your most battered around days two to four, with bruising under the eyes that then fades over two or three weeks. After this sort of nose job, once the cast is off and concealer can handle what's left, most people go back to a desk job. Light exercise where nothing can hit your face is usually fine from three or four weeks, but rugby, boxing and the like need longer. Prop glasses on your forehead or wear contacts for a few weeks, and leave nose-blowing until we give the all-clear.

Judging open rhinoplasty before and after photos

There's no gallery on this page yet; open cases are included in the before and after collection on the main rhinoplasty page. Whatever open rhinoplasty before and after photos you're looking at, zoom in on the tip. You want it defined, and you don't want it pinched. Then ask for a base view at twelve months, a photo taken from underneath, and look at the columella scar with your own eyes.

Patient reviews and videos are useful too, especially for the first weeks of swelling. The before and after you'll care about most, of course, is your own, and that one begins with your first set of photos.

Open rhinoplasty cost in Turkey

Open rhinoplasty in Turkey costs €3,000 with us, exactly the same as closed. The columella incision, tip grafts from your own septum or ear, and any breathing work are all included. Only rib cartilage or a revision moves the price to €4,000. So whether your nose surgery in Turkey is done open or closed, the figure doesn't change. It also covers your airport pick-ups, a translator, and check-ins for the first year.

Abroad, going by the table above, you'd typically pay €8,150 to €11,700 in Britain, €5,500 to €6,900 in Germany, and anywhere between €7,750 and €21,550 in the States. When someone quotes you an open rhinoplasty price, ask whether grafting and septum work are in it. Some clinics bill them separately.

Photos for your open rhinoplasty plan

Send a straight-on photo, one of each profile, a three-quarter view and, most importantly for open cases, a base view taken from below. If you've had any scans or previous surgery on your nose, send the reports. Mention any trouble breathing and any knocks your nose has taken over the years. Our surgeon will come back to you on whether open rhinoplasty in Turkey really suits your nose, what grafting to expect, which of the two prices applies and how long to stay.