Classification and Treatment of Glabella-Radix Deficiency in Primary Augmentation Rhinoplasty

A systematic approach to treating glabella-radix deficiency is lacking, and the management of brow-tip aesthetic lines remains technically challenging.

The authors describe implantation of a customized Gore-Tex prosthesis combined with primary augmentation rhinoplasty to address the glabella-radix deficiency.

Fifty Asian patients with glabella-radix deficiency who received implantation and primary augmentation rhinoplasty were retrospectively evaluated in an 8-year period. Patients were assigned to categories based on brow-tip contour lines and symmetry patterns, and implant dimensions were ascertained from the contour type and from simulated postoperative results.

Eleven men and 39 women were included in the study; the mean patient age was 27.22 years, and mean follow-up was 22.8 months. Seven of the patients were assigned to the type I/Ia category, 24 to type II/IIa, and 19 to type III/IIIa. Forty-five patients were considered to have satisfactory surgical results, with curved, symmetric, and normally spaced brow-tip lines on front view and a smooth frontonasal transition on profile view. Complications occurred in 5 patients and included infection (1 patient), inadequate augmentation (2), and palpable margin folding of the Gore-Tex device (2).

Deformities of brow-tip contour lines coincide with glabella-radix deficiencies in terms of severity. Knowledge of the patterns of brow-tip lines, combined with postoperative image simulation, can help the surgeon design an appropriate glabella-radix prosthesis. When placed in conjunction with other augmentation rhinoplasty procedures, the glabella-radix implant yields sufficient, predictable nasal projection and a harmonious facial aesthetic.