Q. Can't fillers or thread lifting make the nose sufficiently prettier?

Hello. I’m Seo Chan-eol, director of AB Plastic Surgery.

When you want a prettier nose but surgery feels burdensome in many ways, you may look for thread lifting procedures such as Hi-Co and Mizuko, or filler treatments. For some people, fillers or thread lifting alone can shape the nose nicely, but for others they cannot, so let’s look at the characteristics of these procedures and their limitations.

“Filler” means something that adds volume, and most of it is made of hyaluronic acid. Hyaluronic acid is a type of polysaccharide that exists in the human body and has a strong affinity for water molecules, so it tends to contain a lot of water. Filler products are made by cross-linking this ingredient into a liquid gel form, and through this process they can remain in the body while holding moisture and maintaining their volume for a longer time.

If this filler is injected into the nose, it can increase the height of the bridge area, but because it is ultimately a liquid, it is difficult to achieve a slim and sharply elevated shape. As time passes, it spreads, the volume decreases, and it can widen as if swollen, which may result in a so-called avatar nose shape.

Adding a small amount to areas around the hump where volume is lacking may be helpful, but in the long term, repeatedly adding large amounts does not contribute much to creating a high, attractive nasal bridge line.

Then what about threads? To lift the tip of the nose or build up the bridge, threads with barbs are used, and these barbs become fixed while pulling on cartilage or soft tissue, using the principle of adhesion to the surrounding area.

In general, if the nose has a lot of thick skin and subcutaneous tissue, and if it stretches well when pulled toward the tip, spreading is less of a problem, so it can help create a sharper bridge and tip.

However, it is not easy to maintain the initial volume or height after the procedure, and correcting asymmetry can be difficult, making it stand out more. There can also be problems such as the skin becoming thinner as a membrane forms around the foreign body, or damage to the cartilage.

If the current nose shape, skin thickness, degree of stretch, support structure, and other conditions are clear, and the desired improvements are also clear and feasible, a suitable combination can produce results. On the other hand, if the desired shape or direction of improvement is not suitable for these procedures, or if too much is done, it may actually make later surgery more difficult.

We will look at what kinds of problems can arise in the next post.

I hope this was helpful, and I’ll end here.