Snake-shaped ePTFE nasal tip graft combined with conchal cartilage in Asian rhinoplasty: a retrospective cohort study

Background Lacking projection nasal tip is a common deformity of Asian nasal. Various nasal tip grafts commonly used generally require the dissecting septal perichondrium, and most of them are autologous cartilage with a non-integrated design. Snake-shaped ePTFE nasal tip graft is an integrated, stable tip graft without any additional assembly and splicing, conforming to the nasal anatomy characteristics of Asian. Method A retrospective study was performed on Asian patients who underwent rhinoplasty in the nasal tip at Peking University Third Hospital from 2015 to 2022. Nasal tip grafts were categorized into three groups: Snake-shaped ePTFE combined with conchal cartilage (n=15), only costal cartilage (n=25), and only conchal cartilage (n=17). Patients were excluded if their rhinoplasty did not involve a graft above. Visual Analogue Scale, FACE-Q NOSE, FACE-Q NOSRTIL, Nasal Obstruction Symptom Evaluation scale, and Rhinoplasty Outcome Evaluation scale were used to evaluate the preoperative and postoperative results. Results 53 cases (93.0 percent) had low nasal dorsum and 46 cases (80.7 percent) had short nose. There was no significant difference in complication rate among the three groups. The difference between preoperative and postoperative scale scores was statistically significant among the three groups (p<0.05). The score improvements including all scales were the highest in the costal cartilage group and lowest in the conchal cartilage group. Conclusions Snake-shaped ePTFE nasal tip graft can be an effective integrated alternative that provides long-term safety and efficacy compared with traditional autogenous implants (conchal cartilage and costal cartilage).