An 18-year experience with the umbrella graft in rhinoplasty.

Inadequate nasal tip projection is the most common problem of primary and secondary rhinoplasty. Inadequate nasal tip projection with inadequate septal support requires an umbrella graft. The umbrella graft consists of a vertical cartilaginous strut between the medial crura and a horizontal onlay graft overlying the alar domes. The umbrella graft supports the nasal tip pyramid and reestablishes nasal tip projection. The statistics included in this report involve 1252 cases from 1986 to 1996, and it was discovered that 22 percent of the patients required an umbrella graft. Most of these patients had secondary rhinoplasties. The revision rate was 5 percent; the most common complication was cartilaginous show. Cartilage graft loss or significant absorption was not observed. A closed rhinoplasty approach with autologous tissue to reconstruct nasal tip projection was used. The umbrella graft technique is time proven, successful, and reproducible.