Background: For an attractive and natural tip contour in Asian rhinoplasty, insertion of a nasal implant and reinforcement of the cartilaginous framework are essential. However, scar contracture, which often results from augmentation with implant insertion and inadequate soft tissue coverage of the framework, is one of the most common causes of alar retraction. This study reports a novel method of redraping soft tissue along the alar rim to prevent alar retraction in Asians. Methods: Twenty young Asian men who underwent primary rhinoplasty with septoplasty were retrospectively reviewed. After the usual rhinoplasty procedures, alar rim redraping was conducted for the soft tissue along the transcolumellar and bilateral infracartilaginous incisions. The longest axis of the nostril (a) and the height of the nostril from that axis (b) were measured in anterior-posterior and lateral views. The preoperative and postoperative ratios (b/a) were analyzed using the paired t-test. Results: All 20 patients showed natural contours of the nasal tip, nostrils, and alae after a mean follow-up of 53.6 weeks (range, 52–60 weeks). The ratio of the nostril axes significantly decreased postoperatively in all patients except one, by an average of 11.08%±6.52% in the anterior-posterior view and 17.74%±8.49% in the lateral view (P<0.01). There were no complications, including asymmetry, contracture, subdermal plexus injury, flap congestion, or infection. Conclusions A quantitative analysis of alar retraction by evaluating the ratio of nostril axes showed that alar rim redraping is a simple and effective adjuvant technique for preventing alar retraction in rhinoplasty for young Asian men.

Background: Elastic ear cartilage is a good source of tissue for support or augmentation in plastic and reconstructive surgery. However, the amount of ear cartilage is limited and excessive use of cartilage can cause deformation of the auricular framework. This animal study investigated the potential of periosteal chondrogenesis in an ear cartilage defect model. Methods: Twelve New Zealand white rabbits were used in the present study. Four ear cartilage defects were created in both ears of each rabbit, between the central artery and marginal veins. The defects were covered with perichondrium (group 1), periosteum taken from the calvarium (group 2), or periosteum taken from the tibia (group 3). No coverage was performed in a control group (group 4). All animals were sacrificed 6 weeks later, and the ratio of neo-cartilage to defect size was measured. Results: Significant chondrogenesis occurred only in group 1 (cartilage regeneration ratio: mean± standard deviation, 0.97± 0.60), whereas the cartilage regeneration ratio was substantially lower in group 2 (0.10± 0.11), group 3 (0.08± 0.09), and group 4 (0.08± 0.14) (p= 0.004). Instead of chondrogenesis, osteogenesis was observed in the periosteal graft groups. No statistically significant differences were found in the amount of osteogenesis or chondrogenesis between groups 2 and 3. Group 4 showed fibrous tissue accumulation in the defect area. Conclusion Periosteal grafts showed weak chondrogenic potential in an ear cartilage defect model of rabbits; instead, they exhibited osteogenesis, irrespective of their embryological origin.

Osteomas are benign osteogenic neoplasms that usually occur as solitary craniofacial lesions. Multiple osteomas are rare, particularly those that do not occur as part of an associated syndrome. We report a case of a 72-year-old woman who presented with multiple bony protrusions over the forehead and scalp. She denied any diagnosis of syndromes that are known to be associated with osteomas. Surgical excision was performed by endoscopically resecting more than 30 osteomas of the frontal and bilateral parietal bones. Compared with conventional surgical excision through a direct incision, endoscopic-assisted surgery is a simple and effective method for the treatment of multiple craniofacial osteomas and is associated with excellent cosmetic outcomes and no neurovascular complications.

Background: Small-volume liposuction can be performed under local anesthesia, but intolerable pain usually occurs during the perioperative period. This study evaluated the analgesic effect of ultrasound-guided transverse abdominis plane (TAP) block prior to harvesting a small volume of fat from the lower abdomen under local anesthesia and to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of this technique. Methods: Eight patients who participated in a clinical trial of injecting autologous adipose-derived stromal cells obtained from small-volume liposuction of the lower abdomen from May 2020 to July 2020 were included in this study. Ultrasound-guided TAP block was performed 30 minutes before the main procedure. A total of 15 mL of a mixture of 2% lidocaine (20 mL) and normal saline (10 mL) was injected into the fascia layer between the internal oblique muscle and transverse abdominis muscle. Subjective pain was evaluated through questionnaires by a verbal numerical rating scale (VNRS) at the time of tumescent infiltration and 1, 2, 4, and 6 hours after the operation. Results: The median time required for TAP block was 14 minutes (range, 10–21 minutes). The median VNRS score was 3.0 at the time of tumescent solution infiltration, 1.5 at postoperative 1 hour and 2 hours, and 2.0 at postoperative 4 and 6 hours. No complications occurred in relation to the TAP block procedure, including infection, inflammation, hematoma, nerve palsy, or bowel perforation. Conclusions Ultrasound-guided TAP block prior to small-volume liposuction of the lower abdomen was confirmed to be a safe and effective technique for perioperative analgesia.

Background: Pilomatrixoma is a benign tumor that originates from the hair follicle matrix. It usually presents as a hard, slow growing, solitary mass that can be easily misdiagnosed as other skin masses. The aim of this study was to clinically analyze a case series of pilomatrixoma in pediatric patients from Korea. Methods: A total of 165 pediatric patients from 2011 to 2018 with a histological diagnosis of pilomatrixoma were included. A retrospective review was performed using the electronic medical records, including patient demographics, number and location of the mass, clinical and imaging presentation, and postoperative outcomes. Results: There were 61 male and 104 female patients with 152 solitary and 13 multiple pilomatrixomas. Among solitary pilomatrixomas, the lesion commonly occurred in the head and neck (84.2%), followed by upper limbs (11.2%), lower limbs (3.3%), and trunk (1.3%). The pilomatrixoma lesion presented as the following types based on our clinical classification: mass (56.02%), pigmentation (25.31%), mixed (12.65%), ulceration (4.82%), and keloid-like (1.2%). Ultrasonography showed a high positive predictive value (95.56%). There were no specific complications observed except for two cases of recurrence. Conclusion Pilomatrixoma has various clinical feature presentations and commonly occurs in the head and neck. Ultrasonography is a helpful diagnostic tool. Surgical removal of the lesion is the main treatment method with a low recurrence rate.