Humpectomy and spreader flaps.

In a primary rhinoplasty that requires a humpectomy, the dorsal aspect of the upper lateral cartilages is commonly discarded. Many of these patients need spreader grafts to reconstruct the middle third of the nose. However, it is possible to reconstruct the upper lateral cartilages into "spreader flaps" that act much like spreader grafts. In the process of making spreader flaps, an incremental humpectomy is performed on the dorsal septum and bony hump. This humpectomy procedure is more accurate than the conventional humpectomy that involves resection of the bone, and septum as a single unit. The open and closed approaches of this technique are discussed in this article. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.