Does skin thickness affect satisfaction post rhinoplasty?: Middle eastern population as an example

Abstract

Objectives: To determine the mean nasal skin thickness in the Middle Eastern population and to assess the effect of skin thickness on patients’ satisfaction following rhinoplasty surgeries. Methods: Radiological measurements of skin thickness at the 3 vertical thirds of the nasal dorsum were taken. A total of 154 patients (80 females and 74 males) who were scheduled for computed tomography scan for the paranasal sinuses were included in the study. The patients were then categorized into 3 groups: thick, medium, and thin nasal skin. A scale from 10% to 100% was used to assess patient satisfaction following rhinoplasty. Satisfaction and skin thickness were analyzed using the Kruskal-Wallis test. Results: Nasal skin thickness for males was 6.13, 2.76 millimeter (mm) from the upper and 3.70 mm to the lower third. For females, it was 5.34, 2.13 mm from the upper and 3.21 mm to the lower third. There was no statistically significant difference in patient satisfaction among the 3 skin thickness groups (p=0.089). Conclusion: This study provides baseline results of nasal skin thickness in the Middle Eastern population. The results also show that nasal skin thickness may not be a strong factor affecting patient satisfaction.