Footplate Incision in Rhinoplasty: an Update

Abstract

Background In 2004, we reported on 110 consecutive Asian rhinoplasty patients who were treated with the addition of a footplate incision to obtain a greater aesthetic satisfaction. We continue to perform the reported technique with several modifications, and we still think that this method contributes to Asian rhinoplasty. Methods A footplate incision was made along the caudal border of the footplate of the medial crura onto the floor of the nasal vestibule. This incision can be made alone or in combination with either endonasal or open rhinoplasty. It enables surgeons to achieve a further tip projection since the pressure of the skin flap is reduced on the tip. In this study, we emphasize a couple of recent changes that we made to our procedure after publication of the prior article. First, we excised the dog-ear that appeared at the caudal end of the extended footplate incision. After making the new tip, a dog ear can be seen at the posterior end of the footplate incision. Second, an inferior columellar dissection was also extended to achieve an additional tip projection and to improve the columello-labial angle. Results This study included 85 consecutive patients who underwent an aesthetic rhinoplasty using footplate incision techniques between August of 2010 and May of 2013. A total of 43 patients had an adequate follow-up time of over 12 months. The majority of the patients (40/43 cases) were satisfied with the results. Conclusions The authors believe that a footplate incision in aesthetic rhinoplasty is safe and can reliably achieve better results for Asian patients.