FAQ
General / Background
Rhinoplasty is considered the most difficult of all plastic surgery operations. As a Revision Rhinoplasty specialist, Dr. Katrib is consistently exposed to the various issues that can occur after a nasal surgery. For that reason, the only way to achieve excellent results is to heavily specialize in this ever-challenging operation. The first surgery is always the best opportunity to get the highest quality result. The ability to achieve an excellent result only goes down with each subsequent operation.
Dr. Katrib performs 200-250 on average (average Plastic Surgeon in USA performs 8-12 per year). He performs one per d ay, 4 to 5 days per week
Dr. Katrib is double board certified. He is board certified in both Facial Plastic Surgery AND Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery (ENT). This training pathway allows for the highest level of specialization regarding both the functional and cosmetic aspects of the nose.
Dr. Katrib completed medical school in 2011 and subsequently completed a very competitive 5 year residency in Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery in 2016. He then completed further specialization in Facial Plastic Surgery, with a heavy focus on Rhinoplasty, from 2016 to 2017. Dr. Katrib has been a faculty member at the University of Louisville Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, focusing on Rhinoplasty, Revision Rhinoplasty, and Facial Reconstruction since that time.
Yes. All Rhinoplasty Surgeons in the world have an assistant during the operation. This surgery cannot be performed alone. This may be a “Certified Scrub Technician”, a Resident, or a Fellow, or any combination of the three. Dr. Katrib also often has other plastic surgeons from around the world observing him during surgery. However, Dr. Katrib does every operation himself, and these assistants cut sutures and suction. This is a critical part of the surgery, and the patients benefit greatly from this. No one is allowed to “practice” during our operations, but Dr. Katrib is teaching the newest and most cutting edge Rhinoplasty techniques on a daily basis to many current and future nose surgeons.
Techniques and Statistics
Dr. Katrib performs Open Rhinoplasty 98% of the time and Closed Rhinoplasty 2% of the time, usually for “touch up” purposes.. Scars are imperceivable by 3 months on average after open surgery.
85% Revision : 15% Primary.
– Primary surgery takes an average of 2-4 hours.
– Revision surgery takes an average of 4-6+ hours.
There is no objective measurement of success in Rhinoplasty. One person’s goals could be another person’s disaster. Thus, the only true measurement of success is if the patient is satisfied with the result from the operation. 90-95% of our Revision Rhinoplasty patients and 95%+ of our Primary Rhinoplasty patients report immense satisfaction with their results
Complications
The most common complication in Rhinoplasty is infection. The rate of infection in our practice is 1.3%, and the window of infection is 3 months.. In order to minimize infection, many special techniques are employed. First off, the nose and rib (if used) are rinsed and soaked with Ciprofloxacin antibiotic solution the entire operation. IV antibiotics are given the entire operation. Oral antibiotics are given post operatively. Most importantly, the patient applies strong antibiotic ointment in the nose for 3 months, and if rib was used, Ciprofloxacin solution is used in the nose for 3 months. IF an infection were to occur, by treating it rapidly and aggressively, we are able to often salvage the situation and avoid further surgery.
Other much less common issues are visible scarring, warping of grafts, resorption of grafts, and excessive scar tissue formation. For a much more detailed look into these risk and how we minimize them, please refer to the YouTube video here.
Other much less common issues are visible scarring, warping of grafts, resorption of grafts, and excessive scar tissue formation. For a much more detailed look into these risk and how we minimize them, please refer to the YouTube video here.
– For Primary surgery, the revision rate is 3-5%, with most of these revisions being minor “touch ups” (rate of requiring entire operation to be performed again is 1%).
– For Revision surgery, the revision rate is 5-10%, with most of these revisions being minor “touch ups” (rate of requiring entire operation to be performed again is 1%).
– For Revision surgery, the revision rate is 5-10%, with most of these revisions being minor “touch ups” (rate of requiring entire operation to be performed again is 1%).
Consults
Consults are performed BOTH in person, or virtually using Zoom. A $300 consultation fee is required for either, and goes towards the surgeon fee if booked. Roughly 95% of our patients travel from out of town, thus virtual is often chosen first for convenience.
Consults are typically booked 2-4 months after contact is made through the website contact form or via phone call. Occasionally if a cancellation or reschedule occurs, they are offered sooner if the patient is willing and able.
Consults are booked for 1 hour. Dr. Katrib will discuss in detail all aspects of the case, as well as all limitations of the operation. It is imperative that the patient and surgeon are on the same page prior to surgery, and it is critical that patients have a very clear understanding of what is and is not achievable. These details are all recorded after the consultation and saved virtually forever. This allows the information to always be easily accessible and is reviewed many times prior to the operation by Dr. Katrib.
If a virtual consultation was given, we recommend seeing Dr. Katrib in person the day prior to surgery for a full in office examination and review of the plan. This allows the information to be fresh in the mind for both parties. This will be arranged by the staff very early in the booking process.
wait time and costs
– 2-4 months for a consultation.
– 2-4 months for Primary Rhinoplasty.
– 4-6 months for Revision Rhinoplasty.
– Primary Rhinoplasty – $12,000-$18,000 (can vary greatly depending on surgical needs and insurance involvement).
– Revision Rhinoplasty – $28,000-$38,000 (can vary greatly depending on surgical needs and insurance involvement).
Yes, financing is available through CareCredit (https://www.carecredit.com/go/224HNT/). Please contact the office for more information.
Yes, we accept a wide range of insurance policies. In some instances, insurance may actually increase, versus decrease, what the patient pays for surgery. As a deductible would be paid to the insurance company for the functional portions of the operation, if that amount is greater than the savings gained by using insurance, the patient could be spending more in total. Also, if insurance is utilized, there may be last minute denial of the “functional” portion of the procedure due to delays at the insurance company in the review process. In this case the surgery would become an all cosmetic event and the fees would subsequently increase. Both quotes will be sent to the patient 1-2 days after the consult.
Logistics and Travel
– Please refer to the list of recommended hotels and Airbnb’s here. This will be continuously updated.
– Although generally not recommended, it is possible to travel alone for surgery. Arrangements must be made 30 days or greater with the office staff in order to arrange for a nurse to escort the patient back to the hotel/Airbnb from the hospital.
– A home care nurse can be arranged for an hourly fee, but this is not recommended as patients are fully able to take care of themselves shortly after surgery. IV anesthesia is used exclusively in our operation, thus the recovery is generally much smoother than the typical recovery after gas anesthetics. Patients will simply be sitting with their heads elevated, icing their cheeks, and using ointment and saline in their nostrils. These things must be performed