Turn-in folding of the cephalic portion of the lateral crus to support the alar rim in rhinoplasty.

BACKGROUND: The hypoplastic, weak lateral crus of the nose may cause concave alar rim deformity, and in severe cases, even alar rim collapse. These deformities may lead to both aesthetic disfigurement and functional impairment of the nose.

METHODS: The cephalic part of the lateral crus was folded and fixed to reinforce the lateral crus. The study included 17 women and 15 men with a median age of 24 years. The average follow-up period was 12 months. For 23 patients, the described technique was used to treat concave alar rim deformity, whereas for 5 patients, who had thick and sebaceous skin, it was used to prevent weakness of the alar rim. The remaining 4 patients underwent surgery for correction of a collapsed alar valve.

RESULTS: Satisfactory results were achieved without any complications.

CONCLUSIONS: Turn-in folding of the cephalic portion of lateral crus not only functionally supports the lateral crus, but also provides aesthetic improvement of the nasal tip as successfully as cephalic excision of the lateral crura.