Umbrella graft of columella tip: 20 years' experience

We present our experience with nasal grafts over 20 years. The nose, located centrally, always plays a key role in facial aesthetics. Public recognition of this makes rhinoplasty the most popular operation. From the traditional aesthetic point of view, propogated by the media, the nose must be narrow and straight and have correct nasolabial and forehead angles. It is the desire of every surgeon to obtain permanent and satisfactory cosmetic results. However, it is not always possible to obtain good cosmetic appearance using conventional methods when the nose is small or large, when the columella is short, or when the skin is thick. Mostly, nasal tip projection cannot be achieved. In the present article, we report our experiences in primary asthetic rhinoplasty using cartilaginous grafts obtained from septum, costa, and ear as umbrella grafts of columella type.