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Thick-Skinned Nose: Signs, Recovery Time and Surgery Costs

Apr 15, 2021
5 min read

Updated: 3 days ago

When people hear "thick-skinned nose surgery," they usually picture a difficult nose that isn't a great candidate for rhinoplasty. So what does a thick-skinned nose actually mean, and is surgery on one really that difficult? In this article, we'll walk you through the latest thinking on the subject. We'll cover how thick skin affects the outcome of rhinoplasty, along with the recovery process and pricing for thick-skinned nose surgery. We hope this is a useful read for anyone considering surgery on a thick-skinned nose.

What Does a Thick-Skinned Nose Mean?

A thick-skinned nose is one of the more challenging nose types for plastic surgeons to work with: the skin is thicker than on an average nose, and operating on it correctly takes real experience and skill. For patients with a thick-skinned nose, the goal isn't an extremely thin, small nose — it's a shape that suits the face. This is one reason people with a fleshier nose often approach surgery with some hesitation. For a broader look at how skin type affects rhinoplasty results in general, see our guide to nasal skin types in rhinoplasty.

How Can You Tell If You Have a Thick-Skinned Nose?

Many people wonder whether their nose is thick- or thin-skinned. So in this section, we'll answer the question ‘How can you tell if your nasal skin is thick or thin?’ Listing the main traits of a thick-skinned nose below should help you work out whether your own nose falls into this category.

  • People with a thick-skinned nose often deal with oily skin.

  • The nostrils (alae) are thick.

  • The nasal tip has a fleshy, bulbous structure.

  • The skin on the nose is usually visibly porous.

Rhinoplasty for a Thick-Skinned Nose

Having a fleshier nose puts a patient at something of a disadvantage in rhinoplasty. Thick skin covers the fine reshaping work the surgeon does underneath — a bit like a heavy blanket — and can lead to visible asymmetries on the surface. In thin-skinned patients, the underlying reshaping tends to show through beautifully; in thick-skinned patients, we often see that the fine details of that same work don't show through in the same way, because the skin masks the result underneath.

Because of this, the nose doesn't shrink as much as we'd like, can still look somewhat humped, and takes longer to heal than with a typical rhinoplasty. These are the reasons a thick-skinned nose is treated differently in rhinoplasty. That said, not all thick-skinned noses are alike — they fall into their own subtypes:

  • Noses where the dermis itself is thick (these are relatively easier to reshape).

  • Thick-skinned noses where both the dermis and the underlying fat tissue are excessive (this is the group we consider less well suited to surgery)

  • Noses with large pores, that become oily very often, and that break out (we consider this type of thick-skinned nose suitable for surgery once treated with medication first).

Alongside the disadvantages, thick skin also has its advantages for patients. It hides deformities in the underlying bone and cartilage, so they simply don't show from the outside. Having a thick-skinned nose doesn't mean surgery is off the table at all — of course these patients can be operated on. What matters is that this is discussed in detail during the examination, that the patient's expectations are set realistically, and that the possible outcomes are explained clearly and supported with a simulation.

In short, people with a thick-skinned nose are generally at more of a disadvantage going into surgery than other patients. The small refinements made during surgery on a thick-skinned nose simply show through less than they would on other nose types. That said, choosing a surgeon who is genuinely experienced with thick-skinned noses can keep these disadvantages to a minimum. With the right surgeon, patients with a thick-skinned nose can still get a result close to the nose they were hoping for.

Thick-Skinned Nose Recovery Time

Before surgery, people getting a thick-skinned nose done ask one question more than any other: ‘When does a thick-skinned nose finish healing?’ In this part of our article on fleshy-nose rhinoplasty, we'll focus on exactly that. The result right after thick-skinned nose surgery may not fully match the patient's expectations yet. But as the nose gradually settles in the weeks and months afterward, it takes on a noticeably better shape.

Rhinoplasty on a thick-skinned nose also calls for a different recovery timeline than other rhinoplasties. Healing simply takes longer than it does for thin-skinned patients. In patients with thin to medium skin, the nose typically settles over about 1 year, while for thick-skinned patients that process takes at least 2 years. So the time it takes for the nose's final shape to settle is longer for thick-skinned patients than for anyone else.

What to Keep in Mind If You Have a Thick-Skinned Nose

The most important thing for anyone with a thick-skinned nose is choosing a surgeon who is genuinely experienced with this nose type. Patients should go in aware of their own starting point and set their expectations accordingly. If they follow the surgeon's pre- and post-operative instructions, they'll get satisfying results after a patient wait, even though recovery takes longer. In other words, the two things that matter most for surgery on a thick-skinned nose are picking the right surgeon and following that surgeon's instructions to the letter. Once you've had your fleshy-nose surgery done by an experienced surgeon, there's nothing left to worry about.

Thick-Skinned Nose Surgery Costs

As with any cosmetic surgery, the price of thick-skinned nose surgery varies from case to case. The hospital where the surgery takes place, the length of the hospital stay, and the surgical plan itself are among the factors that affect the price. the factors that affect the price of thick-skinned nose surgery — you can find more detail on this in the linked article.

As Prof. Dr. Suleyman Tas Clinic, we've now reached the end of our article on thick-skinned nose surgery. Throughout this piece, we've tried to answer many of the questions people ask most, like ‘What is a thick-skinned nose?’ and ‘What causes it?’ If you'd like more general information on refining a thick-skinned nose and on what happens before, during and after surgery, you can take a look at our rhinoplasty page. To book an appointment or ask a question, feel free to reach us on +90 532 056 3693 — wishing you good health.


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