Rhinoplasty reshapes the bridge and tip of the nose to balance the profile and refine the tip. At Garnet a board-certified plastic surgeon, Dr. In-Soo Baek, plans and performs every case himself — typically pairing a soft silicone dorsal augmentation with the patient's own septal or ear cartilage at the tip — from consultation through every follow-up.
Rhinoplasty result of an actual Garnet patient (published with consent). Date, procedure and clinic (Garnet Plastic Surgery, Apgujeong) are labelled on the image, with the usual same-condition disclaimer. Results, recovery and suitability vary by individual and are not guaranteed.
Garnet is well known for neck-wrinkle and lifting surgery. The facility is excellent and I’m thoroughly satisfied with the friendly consultation and the surgeon’s skill.
Director Baek In-soo, thank you so much. Thanks to you I keep getting told I look younger — it feels like I’ve gone back to my younger days.
I had upper and lower eyelid surgery and I’m really satisfied. The director and the manager were both so kind and clear.
I started with under-eye fat repositioning — the director and the manager are genuinely kind and good at what they do. I’ll be back.
I came on a referral and was very satisfied thanks to the doctor’s kind consultation and clear explanations. The nurses were friendly too.
I kept reading the reviews and came trusting the many mentions of skill and kindness. The clinic was busy with patients and spotless.
Rhinoplasty is a surgical operation that reshapes the bony and cartilaginous framework of the nose to alter its height, width and tip. At Garnet a typical primary case augments the bridge with a soft silicone graft and rebuilds the tip with the patient's own septal or ear cartilage, so the dorsum gains height while the tip is defined and supported by living autologous tissue rather than an implant.
The nose has two functional zones that age and look different. The bridge (dorsum) sets the height and the straightness of the profile; the tip sets refinement, projection and how the nose meets the lip. A flat bridge and an under-defined tip are common reasons people seek rhinoplasty, and the two are usually addressed together so the profile stays balanced.
At Garnet the common approach combines a soft silicone graft along the dorsum to raise the bridge with the patient's own cartilage — most often septal or ear cartilage — to build and support the tip. Using autologous cartilage at the tip, where skin is thin and movement is greatest, is intended to give a natural, well-supported result and keep an implant away from the most demanding part of the nose.
This is a single-surgeon operation. Dr. Baek assesses the skin thickness, the existing framework and what each patient wants, plans the case at consultation, performs it himself and reviews healing at set intervals; the clinic caps the day at two surgeries, so each case has unhurried time. The depth of the plan, not the maximum possible change, is the aim.
From planning and graft harvest to dorsal augmentation and tip work — every step by Dr. Baek.
A single surgeon, start to finish. Dr. Baek plans the case, performs the operation himself and reviews every follow-up. The clinic caps the day at two surgeries, so each operation has unhurried time.
A primary rhinoplasty at Garnet typically takes about 1.5–2 hours and is usually carried out under local anaesthesia with sedation, decided with you at consultation; nose dressings are changed on day 1 and day 3 and nose sutures come out at about 7 days. The steps below outline how the procedure is carried out.
Dr. Baek assesses the bridge, tip, skin thickness and breathing in person, agrees the desired profile and discusses graft choice. Imaging is used where it adds to planning; he decides with you whether a closed or open approach fits the case.
The nose is approached closed (inside the nostrils) or open (a small bridging incision under the tip) depending on how much tip work is needed, so external scars are hidden inside the nose or in the natural under-tip crease.
The patient's own septal or ear cartilage is taken to build and support the tip; autologous tissue at the tip is chosen because the skin there is thin and the area moves the most.
The bridge is raised to the agreed height — commonly with a soft silicone graft carved to fit the dorsum — so the profile is balanced against the new tip rather than over-projected.
The tip is shaped and supported with the harvested cartilage and fixed, with adjuncts such as fat grafting only where the consultation shows they balance the result.
Fine closure, a nasal splint and dressings. Because Garnet is single-surgeon, Dr. Baek reviews you himself, changes dressings on day 1 and day 3 and removes nose sutures around day 7.
The nose is a framework of bone in the upper third and cartilage in the lower two-thirds, draped with skin that varies in thickness from person to person. The tip is shaped by the paired lower lateral (alar) cartilages, while the septum in the midline provides central support and a source of graft cartilage. How much the tip can be refined depends heavily on skin thickness and the strength of this cartilage framework.
Augmentation rhinoplasty therefore separates the two tasks: adding height to the dorsum, and shaping plus supporting the tip. A range of graft materials can be used for the dorsum — autologous septal, ear or rib cartilage, or alloplastic implants such as silicone — and it is widely accepted that no single material is ideal for every nose (JAMA Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 2020; DOI 10.1001/jamaoto.2019.4787). At Garnet the dorsum is commonly raised with a soft silicone graft while the tip is built from the patient's own cartilage; where a patient prefers no implant at all, an implant-free rhinoplasty uses cartilage throughout.
| Implant + cartilage (typical) | Implant-free (cartilage only) | Revision rhinoplasty | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dorsum material | Soft silicone graft | Ear / septal / rib cartilage | Material chosen per case |
| Tip material | Own septal / ear cartilage | Own septal / ear cartilage | Cartilage / fascia / dermis |
| Implant in the nose | Yes, on the dorsum | None | Often removed / replaced |
| Best suited to | Low bridge needing clear height | Preference to avoid any implant | Correcting a previous result |
| Donor-site step | None for the dorsum | Ear / septal (sometimes rib) | Per chosen material |
A systematic review and meta-analysis comparing augmentation with autologous cartilage versus silicone prosthesis found each has trade-offs in complication profile, with no single material ideal for every nose (Ann Palliat Med 2022; DOI 10.21037/apm-22-111). The right choice is individual; Dr. Baek advises at consultation, and an implant-free option is available.
A primary rhinoplasty is usually performed under local anaesthesia with sedation over a roughly 1.5–2 hour operation, decided with you and the anaesthesia team after your medical history is reviewed for comfort and safety.
Because Garnet caps the day at two surgeries, the operation is unhurried and the same surgeon who planned the case carries it out and reviews recovery — there is no separate operating doctor and no rotation of care.
Garnet is registered with Korea's foreign-patient programme; pre-operative checks, scheduling and after-care are coordinated for international visitors in English.
If your goals would be better met by a different graft plan, an implant-free approach or no surgery, that is said at consultation. Photos can be reviewed before you travel.
Rhinoplasty incisions are mostly hidden inside the nostrils when a closed approach is used. When tip work needs an open approach, a single small bridging incision is placed across the columella (the strip of skin between the nostrils) in its natural crease, where it heals to a fine line that is not usually obvious once mature.
If ear cartilage is taken, the donor incision sits in a natural fold of the ear and the donor sutures come out a little later than the nose. Scars are permanent but designed to settle discreetly; healing varies by individual and skin type, and Dr. Baek reviews scar maturation and advises on scar care at the 1-, 3- and 6-month visits.
Keep the head elevated, use cold compresses early, take medication as prescribed, keep the splint dry, sleep on your back, and keep your follow-up visits.
Knocking or pressing the nose, resting glasses on the bridge, blowing the nose forcefully early on, strenuous exercise and heavy lifting, alcohol and smoking, hot showers/saunas, and direct sun until cleared.
Rhinoplasty makes a structural change to the bone-and-cartilage framework, so the result is long-lasting rather than temporary. Building the tip from the patient's own cartilage is intended to give durable support in the area that moves and ages most. In a systematic review, reoperation rates after primary rhinoplasty were low overall, though some patients seek revision (Costa et al, Int Arch Otorhinolaryngol 2016; DOI 10.1055/s-0036-1586489).
The nose continues to change slowly with age, and skin thickness, healing and lifestyle all influence the long-term shape. A dorsal silicone graft can, uncommonly, need attention years later; this is part of the consultation discussion, and an implant-free approach or, if a previous result needs correcting, revision rhinoplasty are alternatives Dr. Baek will explain.
Where a patient prefers no implant at all, an implant-free rhinoplasty builds both the dorsum and tip from the patient's own cartilage instead of a silicone graft.
Septal and ear cartilage are the usual tip materials; for cases needing more framework, rib-cartilage rhinoplasty or a septal / ear-cartilage plan may be discussed.
Fat grafting elsewhere on the face can balance overall proportions where the consultation shows it, though it is not used to build the nose itself.
If you have had a previous rhinoplasty elsewhere, revision rhinoplasty is assessed individually with your operative history and photographs.
Every operation carries risk. For rhinoplasty the considerations include swelling that takes months to fully settle (especially at the tip), asymmetry, and — where an implant is used on the dorsum — a small long-term chance of deviation, contour visibility or, uncommonly, infection or extrusion that may need attention. Silicone dorsal augmentation has a recognised but generally manageable complication and revision profile in large experience (Aesthetic Surg J 2025; DOI 10.1093/asj/sjaf102).
Other possible risks include changes in skin sensation around the nose, scar-related issues at an open-approach or ear-donor site, breathing changes, and the need for revision in a minority of cases. Smoking raises wound-healing and skin risks. These are explained individually at consultation so expectations are realistic.
What reduces risk in practice: careful selection of graft material for the nose in front of the surgeon, building the tip from living autologous cartilage, meticulous technique, and follow-up by the operating surgeon. Garnet's single-surgeon, low-volume model is built around exactly this kind of unhurried planning and personal after-care.
Most international patients plan roughly 8–12 days in Korea for a primary rhinoplasty, so the splint can come off and nose sutures be removed by the surgeon — and any ear-donor sutures shortly after — before travel. The coordinator confirms the timing for your specific plan.
Before you travel, send clear photos (front, three-quarter and side, plus a relaxed profile) and a note on your concern and dates through WhatsApp, LINE or the form below. You'll get an honest pre-assessment — including which graft plan suits you — rather than a hard sell.
Garnet is registered with Korea's foreign-patient programme and coordinates consultations, scheduling and after-care in English. After you return home, Dr. Baek can continue to review your recovery by messenger as the tip settles.
| Implant + cartilage (typical) | Implant-free (cartilage only) | Revision rhinoplasty | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dorsum material | Soft silicone graft | Ear / septal / rib cartilage | Material chosen per case |
| Tip material | Own septal / ear cartilage | Own septal / ear cartilage | Cartilage / fascia / dermis |
| Implant in the nose | Yes, on the dorsum | None | Often removed / replaced |
| Best suited to | Low bridge needing clear height | Preference to avoid any implant | Correcting a previous result |
| Donor-site step | None for the dorsum | Ear / septal (sometimes rib) | Per chosen material |
Citations are provided for general education. This page is informational and does not replace an in-person consultation; suitability, technique and recovery are individual.
Send photos and your question before you travel. An English-speaking coordinator reviews every enquiry and replies with honest guidance on whether surgery is appropriate, the likely plan and timing.
Prefer to chat now? Reach the coordinator directly: