Nose Job Gone Wrong? – You can make a claim

What is a nose job?

A nose job, or rhinoplasty, is a surgical procedure that seeks to change the size, shape or even angle of a person’s nose. This can be for cosmetic reasons, or a medical reason like improving breathing after an injury to the nose for example.
Using existing bone and cartilage within the nose, surgeons make changes to the shape and size of the nose to the patient’s needs. If the change is a major one, then cartilage can be taken from other areas of the body.

What happens if a nose job goes wrong?

As with all surgical procedures, there is a chance that a nose job can go wrong. The nose is a complicated facial feature meaning there is more than one way the operation can turn out badly.

If the operation is done poorly, it could lead to issues with breathing. A bad nose job could cause permanent internal damage to the nose and nasal passages, restricting breathing for the patient.

When removing cartilage from the nose to reduce its size or reshape it, if not done properly it could cause the nose to begin to break down and become misshapen over time. This can cause problems that make it difficult to breathe through your nose.

As with all surgical procedures, infection control procedures must be followed during the operation and during the healing process. An infection could lead to serious damage or conditions like sepsis.

Signs of a bad nose job

A nose job can take from six months to a year to fully heal and start to see the results of the procedure. During this time, you may begin to notice things about your nose that don’t look right or look different to what you discussed with your surgeon.
Some things you may notice with your nose job include:

• Developing breathing difficulties
• ‘Pollybeak’ – This is where the tip of the nose is overfilled, leading the nose to look like it is pointing downward like a bird’s beak.
• Numbness and changes to your sense of taste and smell could be an indication of nerve damage following the procedure.
• Thinning nostrils could lead to breathing difficulties and can be an indication that the procedure has not gone well.
• A scooped shape in the bridge of your nose can be a sign that the surgeon has removed too much bone, either by mistake or from using an incorrect tool.

Proving your case for nose job compensation

As with all cosmetic surgery claims, the process of claiming compensation can be a long one. To be successful in your claim, you would need to prove that the procedure you received, fell below the standard of an accepted body of plastic surgeons or clinicians carrying out the surgery.

As your legal team, Blackwater Law would look to prove that your surgeon breached their duty of care to you, either through the methods they used, how they performed the procedure, and even as part of the consent and aftercare procedures.

If a breach of duty of care can be found, and it can be proved that this breach caused an injury severe enough, you may be successful in your claim.