Comparison of effects of spreader grafts and flaring sutures on nasal airway resistance in rhinoplasty

Cephalic resection of the lateral crura of the alar cartilages, lateral osteotomies, and removal of the nasal hump during rhinoplasty may cause collapse of the internal nasal valve angle. This study was performed to compare preventive effects of two techniques (spreader grafts and flaring sutures) on rhinoplasty by rhinomanometry. Two hundred and forty-eight patients participated in this semi-experimental study. The patients were assigned into two groups. 28 of them were not available for follow-up. All patients had a straight nose in the midline and no severe septal deviations. 87 of 220 patients underwent the spreader grafts technique and the flaring sutures technique was performed in 133 patients. The nasal airway resistance was calculated by active anterior rhinomanometry on admission to hospital and again between 3 and 6 months following surgery. The mean of follow-up was 20.9 ± 2.9 weeks. After rhinoplasty, nasal airway resistance decreased in 46 patients (52.9 percent) of spreader grafts group and in 84 patients (63.2 percent) of flaring sutures group. The median nasal airway resistance difference (before–after surgery) of spreader grafts and flaring sutures groups was 0.027 Pa/ml/s (range −110 to 130) and 0.017 Pa/ml/s (range −0.690 to 0.790), respectively. The difference of nasal airway resistance between before and after rhinoplasty in two groups was insignificance (Mann–Whitney U test, P = 0.5). The spreader grafts and flaring sutures move the dorsal border of the upper lateral cartilage in a lateral direction and had similar preventive effect on nasal airway resistance after rhinoplasty.