The History of Nose Cosmetic Surgery
A physician by the name of Sushruta from ancient India (500 BC) recorded
described the treatment of blocked nasal passages in a text book of that
period. As a result he is considered to be the “Father of Plastic Surgery”.
During Sushruta’s adult life, to punish certain crimes, the perpetrators
had their noses cut off to mark their offense. It was this collection of
criminals that gave Sushruta the environment to fine tune the craft of
nose reconstruction. His method was of using “forehead flaps” (pedicle
flaps) continues to be used today in the cases of sever accident
disfigurement with substantial skin lose of the nose.
This method of using “forehead flaps” application in nose cosmetic surgery is a process
of harvesting sections of the skin from the forehead. The forehead
offers the best skin in color, texture and thickness to match the lower
portions of the face.
In the late 1700’s a man by the name of Johann Deiffenbach, a German
surgeon, introduced the first Open Rhinoplasty method of cutting into
the nose to reduce the size. Up until this point, nose reconstruction
was used only for restoring function to the nose with appearance being a
by product of the surgeons work.
Jacques Joseph, a Jewish German doctor introduced aesthetic nose
reconstruction in the early 1900’s. His developments went far beyond the
area of the nose and into all portions of the face. His book entitled
‘Nasal Plastic Surgery and Other Facial Reconstructive Procedures, With
an Appendix on Reconstructive Breast Surgery and Some Other Procedures
in the Area of External Plastic Surgery. An Atlas and Text Book.‘ is
considered the “milestone in plastic surgery” and continues to be
required reading for medical students today.
The final development that changed the methods of nose cosmetic surgery
was the introduction of what is now known as Open Rhinoplasty in the
1970’s. Dr. Wilfred S. Goodman first introduced the new technique of
cutting the base of the nose across the small bridge between the nasal
passages. By 1987, with the help of Dr. Jack Anderson who popularized
and standardized the method has made nose cosmetic surgery to where it
is today.