Can you get rhinoplasty at any age? [Shannon O'Brien, MD, Portland]

Eva Sheie (00:00):
You're listening to Where Before Meets After.

Dr. O'Brien (00:03):
Can you have a rhinoplasty at any age? I think before the age of 16, for sure, the mid-face, the nose is still growing and changing. After 16, depending on each individual patient's development and what have you, you can start having that conversation and some are ready and some are not. And then as we age, I definitely have patients who are older who have noticed their noses have changed, either elongated or the skin has changed or they now have a bump that they never saw before or whatever. And so I have a population of older patients as well that come in for rhinoplasty.

Eva Sheie (00:44):
Is it true that your nose keeps growing as you get older?

Dr. O'Brien (00:47):
It's a good question. I think it's not really that it keeps growing. I think our skin changes. It gets a little thicker sometimes and makes it look bigger. We definitely lose some elasticity in the ligaments that are sort of between some of the cartilages. And so as those spaces lengthen with the loss of elasticity or the loss of firmness or tightness of those little ligaments, the space grows between the cartilages and so it may look like it's longer. But in general, I don't think the cartilages still grow as we age. I definitely see people who their noses look different and may be bigger, but scientifically speaking, I'm not convinced that the cartilages are still growing. I think the shape is changing and some of the other things are changing, but it's not that it's truly grown even if it looks bigger.

Eva Sheie (01:43):
Does anyone ever bring you photos of themself when they were younger and say, "I want my nose to look like this when I was younger?"

Dr. O'Brien (01:50):
People will often bring pictures of themselves when they're younger and you can see the changes and the aging. Sometimes things look different because maybe they've lost volume in their cheeks and their nose doesn't look bigger itself, but some of the other structures around it have changed or their lip has elongated and so now that relationship looks different. And so sometimes there are other surrounding discussions beyond just the nose when folks bring in pictures and start showing what they liked when they were younger.

Eva Sheie (02:25):
That's really interesting. That lip elongating is often something that fools people and makes them think it's their nose, isn't it?

Dr. O'Brien (02:33):
Definitely when the lip elongates and the soft tissues of the cheeks start to move and things like that, it can make your nose look different when you smile or animate. And so you do see definitely the surrounding structures contributing to some of the conversation about what they're seeing in their nose and in photos.

Eva Sheie (02:54):
Thanks for listening. I'm your host, Eva Sheie. Follow the show and submit questions for our experts at wherebeforemeetsafter.com. Where Before Meets After is a production of The Axis.