In almost all cases of rhinoplasty incisions are made inside the nose, thus there is no visible scar. An exception is the surgery for reducing the size of nostrils. Here small incisions are made outside. These incisions are so made that they are least visible later on. Over a period of time they become nearly invisible.

In some selected case the doctor decides to do an external rhinoplasty. This operation involves making a small incision in the area of nose between the nostrils. This incision becomes invisible as the time passes off.

To reduce a big nose, the projection of the cartilage and bony part of the nose is reduced.

To augment a depressed nose, extra tissue or substance is added. Generally there are three varieties of such augmentation materials.

1. Artifcial Materials: Silicone, Porex and Goretex are the commonly used materials for augmenting the nose. Silicone is a rubber like synthetic material used to augment various parts of the body. The augmentation of the nose with the silicone gives the best result. However, sometimes a patient’s body is not able to tolerate silicone as after all it is a ‘foreign’ material. If it so happens, the silicone can be removed and the nose then returns to what it was before. The nose then can be augmented by other two methods. Medpor or Porex and Goretex offer marginal benefits over the silicone. These implants incorporate well in the tissuen hence are less likely to be rejected and moving around.
2. Bone: Here the person’s own bone is used. The bone is obtained from the skull, pelvic bone or the rib. Removal of bone from these area does not leave any defect or functional deficit. The disadvantage of putting the bone is that it gets smaller because of absorption. Hence after some time the augmentation is lost in variable degrees. If bone from skull is used, it gives the best result and the absorption is either absent or minimal. Taking the bone from skull is however technically more demanding for the surgeon.
3. Cartilage: To explain a layman, the cartilage can be defined as a soft bone, bone without calcium. It is found in lower half of the nose, the septum of nose (the curtain that separates two sides of the nose), ear and ribs. The cartilage can be taken from all these areas. Augmentation with the cartilage is good for minor augmentation. If a major augmentation is desired, the cartilage is not a good material as it has a tendency to bend.

Some cases require correction of a deviation of the septum of the nose and improvement of the tip of the nose.