Rhinoplasty Abroad Review
Rhinoplasty overseas
A rhinoplasty certainly can be performed abroad.
However, if you live far away which based on the question you do, how are you going to follow-up with any problems that might arise? (Steven Wallach, MD, Manhattan Plastic Surgeon)
Find a Rhinoplasty specialist close to home.
You will need to have frequent follow-ups with your Rhinoplasty surgeon for the first year after surgery. I strongly advise against having elective surgery performed abroad.
Prices are certainly lower in South America, but the peace of mind you’ll have knowing your surgeon is close by is priceless. (Eric M. Joseph, MD, West Orange Facial Plastic Surgeon)
Rhinoplasty abroad
The results of a rhinoplasty make take several months to evaluate and some estimates have placed revision rates as high as 15%. Generally, it is the intention of most surgeons to achieve an excellent outcome that meets the patient’s realistic expectations.
If you have this abroad, are you prepared to travel back for revisions or follow-up? (Otto Joseph Placik, MD, Chicago Plastic Surgeon)
Issues with Cosmetic Surgery abroad
If one is considering rhinoplasty or any cosmetic surgery overseas or in a different country, you have to think about what you will do if rare, but serious complications occur.
Rhinoplasty recovery abroad
Any savings that you may have managed by going out of the United States for your cosmetic surgery may be lost and then some by the added expense of either returning to the foreign place to have the complication managed or to pay an American Plastic Surgeon to now manage your complication.
All surgeons have complications, but when your surgeon is thousands of miles away it is much harder to deal with the problem. If you do go out of the country for your cosmetic surgery, then you want to make sure that you have plenty of time to recover and make sure any immediate problems get taken care of before returning to the States. (Kent V. Hasen, MD, Naples Plastic Surgeon)
Who will take care of you if you have a problem? How do you check on the doctors qualifications? Who will follow you? It takes a year to heal – if you don’t like the result what can you do about it?
Rhinoplasty abroad in USA
Remember – you often get what you pay for. Cheap is Cheap. (William B. Rosenblatt, MD, New York Plastic Surgeon)
With any procedure abroad, assuming you have confidence and checked out the surgeon performing the procedure, you would also like to know what will happen if you do have the rare serious complications and how will they be handled over there.
Are you prepared to spend extra time overseas if there are complications keeping you from traveling?
You should also check out your options if yo have moderate or long term complications and see a surgeon here in the United States. Is there a surgeon who will help yo through those problems. (Theodore Katz, MD, FACS, Philadelphia Plastic Surgeon)
Is rhinoplasty abroad better
Proper choice of surgeon is important for Rhinoplasty abroad
I have no doubt that there are excellent plastic surgeons in Europe, Asia, America, etc.
It is important to communicate well with your surgeon and make sure that you have enough time to recover before travelling back! (Hisham Seify, MD, PhD, FACS, Orange County Plastic Surgeon)
Rhinoplasty is very difficult surgery. However there are fine rhinoplasty surgeons all over the world. I would consult with ASAPS or ISAPS to find your surgeon.
If you are to have your surgery out of the country you need to be aware that a complication may be more difficult to manage because of the distance from your home.
A surgeon in your hometown may not be willing to take care of your complication without expecting serious financial compensation.
In the end you will get what you pay for. Just do your homework and speak to patients who have gone out of the country about their experiences. (Manish H. Shah, MD, FACS, Denver Plastic Surgeon)
Rhinoplasty and cosmetic surgery overseas carries a host of risks
Travel overseas for medical or surgical care is certainly not a new subject in the field of plastic surgery, or in many other areas of medical care including organ transplantation and hip replacement.
The term used and referred to is medical tourism and has become very attractive for those seeking affordable care options.
There are centers and clinics within the US and outside of it which cater to patients willing to travel for care and many do a very good job.The difficulty is finding the right center for the care you need.
Experience and training can be hard to sort out, as can be the cost of any complication or unforeseen event.
One issue you may not have considered is that cosmetic surgery is weighted heavily in art and aesthetics.
Your surgeon’s sense of what a good result is, or what is beautiful can be biased by cultural differences. Unless you have an understanding of a particular culture and know the language it may be a challenge to express what result you are looking for, or what result they are accustomed to deliver. There is no right or wrong, just differences.
Regional differences even occur within one country. A natural breast augmentation in Las Vegas is probably not the same as one in Minneapolis. Wherever you go, you must make sure that you and your surgeon understand each other. All travel involves risk. Travel in order to get the result that you are looking for and not just the price. Great results can be priceless. (Peter E. Johnson, MD, Chicago Plastic Surgeon)
Getting a rhinoplasty overseas
American Plastic and ENT surgeons do not have a monopoly on surgical skill or excellence.
Moreover, because of our legal system and overhead our fees are in many cases higher than you may be charged in other parts of the world.
The 2 sticky points are :
- How you you evaluate the reputation and training of your surgeon?
- If something goes wrong in the short or long term, WHO will take care of you? I would consider these carefully. (Peter A. Aldea, MD, Memphis Plastic Surgeon)
Rhinoplasty overseas can be dangerous
The US has the best training and certification methods in the world and the safest health care system in the world. The only reason people leave the US to have plastic surgery is cost and when it comes to having surgery, cost should be the last consideration, far below the concerns of your safety and achieving the result you desire. I have seen some very unusual and disturbing things in patients who have had procedures done overseas.
One Rhinoplasty patient had unapproved material placed into her nose to attempt to correct an over resection of the bone. This one was done in Armenia. I have also seen patients who had breast surgery done in South America – too much breast was removed and the surgeon placed a sponge infiltrated with silicone rubber to cover the problem. Both patients had chronic draining sinuses which required surgery and left them with significant scars. There is no malpractice in foreign countries and if something goes wrong you have no recourse.
When it comes to your health, cutting corners to save money is a bad idea. Of course, there are well trained excellent surgeons in other countries, but finding the best is going to be more difficult than getting certification details and local referrals of surgeons here in the US. (Brooke R. Seckel, MD, FACS, Boston Plastic Surgeon)