Promising Implants in Rhinoplasty

Overview

The authors state that many difficulties in rhinoplasty tempt surgeons toward materials from outside the body. Implants have long been used to reduce operating time, achieve a more reliable result, or fill in where the patient's own cartilage is insufficient. The article describes nasal implantology as an innovative and highly lucrative field developing technologically advanced products.

Sections of note

• Review article; the abstract reports no patient numbers, no outcomes, no complication rates and no follow up.
• Three stated reasons for using implants are shorter operating time, a more reliable result, and shortage of the patient's own material.
• The authors describe nasal implantology as an innovative and highly lucrative field.
• The article reviews some popular nasal implant choices.
• It also looks toward products that may become available.
• No specific implant is evaluated with data in the abstract.

What it means for a patient

• Implants avoid harvesting cartilage from the patient, which removes a second surgical site.
• The reliability claim refers to the material behaving predictably, not to the operation succeeding more often.
• The authors themselves note the field is commercially driven, which is relevant to how new products are promoted.
• No complication rates or comparisons against the patient's own tissue appear here.

Why this paper matters

Implants versus the patient's own cartilage is the longest running material debate in rhinoplasty, and new products enter the market continually. This review surveys the current options. It provides no evidence on which performs best or lasts longest.

Terms

• Implant: a manufactured material placed in the body to add shape or support.
• Exogenous material: material originating outside the patient's own body.
• Autologous material: tissue taken from the patient's own body.
• Nasal implantology: the field concerned with implants used in the nose.