The role of septal surgery in management of the deviated nose.

The deviated nose represents a complex cosmetic and functional problem. Septal surgery plays a central role in the successful management of the externally deviated nose. This study included 260 patients seeking rhinoplasty to correct external nasal deviations; 75 percent of them had various degrees of nasal obstruction. Septal surgery was necessary in 232 patients (89 percent), not only to improve breathing but also to achieve a straight, symmetrical, external nose as well. A graduated surgical approach was adopted to allow correction of the dorsal and caudal deviations of the nasal septum without weakening its structural support to the dorsum or nasal tip. The approach depended on full mobilization of deviated cartilage, followed by straightening of the cartilage and its fixation in the corrected position by using bony splinting grafts through an external rhinoplasty approach.