We are a concierge, not a clinic. Our part is to match you with a nose surgery hospital in Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City with a Ministry of Health license and registration. It is free for patients.
Sources: healthdirect Australia, Beauty Link team records
What a nose surgery quote should list
The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) lists the costs a rhinoplasty may include:
- the surgeon's fee
- anaesthesia fees
- hospital or surgical facility costs
- medical tests
- garments to wear after surgery
- prescription medicines
ASPS says a surgeon's fee is based on their experience, the type of procedure and where they work.
In Australia, healthdirect says your surgeon and anaesthetist must give you the cost in writing. That note should show the total, when payments are due, payments for follow-up care and possible costs for more surgery. You can ask a hospital in Vietnam for the same details.
Sources: American Society of Plastic Surgeons, healthdirect Australia
Open or closed nose surgery
ASPS describes two ways to do a rhinoplasty. In a closed procedure, the cuts are hidden inside the nose. In an open procedure, a cut is made across the columella, the narrow strip of tissue between the nostrils.
Healthdirect says there are different ways to do nose surgery, and you can ask your surgeon what is planned. ASPS says the fee depends partly on the type of procedure, so ask which way each quote assumes.
Sources: American Society of Plastic Surgeons, healthdirect Australia
Where extra cartilage comes from
ASPS says the surgery sometimes needs cartilage grafts. Most often the cartilage comes from the septum, the wall in the middle of the nose. Now and then it comes from the ear, and rarely from a rib. Healthdirect names inside the nose, the ear or other parts of the body.
A review in the journal Facial Plastic Surgery looks at augmentation rhinoplasty. It says that in Asian countries, man-made implants are used for it much more often than the body's own tissue. Silicone is one of the materials it names. The same review lists problems reported with implants, including infection, the implant moving or pushing out, and swelling that lasts longer.
If your plan is an augmentation rhinoplasty, ask whether it uses your own tissue or an implant. Your surgeon can explain why they suggest it.
Sources: American Society of Plastic Surgeons, healthdirect Australia, Facial Plastic Surgery (Choi, 2020)
Septum work and breathing
Healthdirect says nose surgery may involve septoplasty. This opens nasal passages that a bent septum has blocked. The Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons, quoted by healthdirect, says septoplasty is often done at the same time as rhinoplasty. If your plan includes work on the septum, the quote should say so.
In Australia, healthdirect says Medicare may cover nose surgery done for breathing problems, but generally not cosmetic surgery. Private health insurance often does not cover a cosmetic nose job either.
Sources: healthdirect Australia, Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons
A first surgery or a revision
Healthdirect says your surgeon needs your full medical history, so if you have had nose surgery before, say so at the start. ASPS lists the possibility of revisional surgery among the risks of rhinoplasty. Healthdirect says you may not get the exact outcome you hoped for, and more surgery may be needed.
If you have a nose implant now, say so before you are quoted.
Ask in writing whether the quote is for a first surgery or a revision. Also ask what more surgery later might cost. Healthdirect lists possible costs for revision surgery as part of the written cost.
Sources: American Society of Plastic Surgeons, healthdirect Australia
Costs that sit outside the quote
- Time in Vietnam. After a face procedure, the NHS recommends you do not fly for 7 to 10 days, and says air travel and major surgery raise clot risk. Healthdirect says the nose splint and bandages usually come off after about a week. Your surgeon will tell you what applies to you.
- Travel insurance. A basic policy rarely covers a nose job abroad, says Smartraveller, so price in a specialised policy for your procedure.
- Complications. Smartraveller says a complication may cost more to fix, so your estimate should cover it.
- Care at home. The NHS says to think about where check ups will take place.
Sources: NHS, healthdirect Australia, Smartraveller
Why the total is only part of the choice
ASPS says the surgeon's experience and your comfort with them matter just as much as the final cost. The NHS says to weigh any savings against the risks, as safety standards may not be as high. Smartraveller wants you to confirm two things: local authority accreditation for the hospital, and real qualifications for the surgeon. It also says to be wary if a hospital suggests much lower risks than you were told about in Australia.
Nose surgery has risks. ASPS and healthdirect list these among them:
- risks from the anaesthetic
- infection, and heavy nosebleeds
- numbness, or a reduced sense of smell
- trouble breathing
- poor healing, or unusually thick scars
- a rare hole in the septum
- a nose that does not look the way you hoped
We believe not everyone should be approved for rhinoplasty, and a nose quote is not meant to be the first and only step. Read more in our guide, is plastic surgery in Vietnam safe.
Sources: American Society of Plastic Surgeons, NHS, Smartraveller, healthdirect Australia, Beauty Link team records
How to compare two quotes line by line
Two quotes with different totals may not be for the same surgery. Check that each one answers these points:
- Open or closed surgery, and what will be reshaped.
- Where any cartilage comes from, and, for an augmentation, your own tissue or an implant.
- Whether septum work is part of the plan.
- A first surgery or a revision.
- The type of anaesthesia, such as sedation or general anaesthesia.
- Any nights in hospital, plus tests, medicines, the splint and dressings.
- Check ups, and when the splint and stitches come out.
- What happens, and the cost, if there is a complication or you need more surgery.
If a quote leaves a line blank, ask the hospital to fill it in. Questions about your own nose and health go to your surgeon.
Sources: American Society of Plastic Surgeons, healthdirect Australia, NHS
How Beauty Link helps you compare
For your nose, we open a WhatsApp chat with you, your advisor and the hospital's staff. The hospital is asked to introduce itself, talk through options that might suit your nose, and send a personal plan and quotation explaining what it covers. Your advisor translates and helps the messages flow.
If you go ahead, Beauty Link arranges airport pickup in Vietnam. During recovery, and again once you are home, your advisor checks in with you. The hospital pays Beauty Link, so you never do. For more, see the rhinoplasty in Vietnam guide, the plastic surgery cost guide and how to check a Vietnam hospital.
Sources: Beauty Link team records
Questions
Beauty Link does not publish prices. Healthdirect says nose surgery costs vary from patient to patient, and that the cost should be given to you in writing. So ask each hospital for its full cost in writing.
Not straight away. Your surgeon gives you a date for your own case. For a facial cosmetic procedure, the NHS recommends you do not fly for 7 to 10 days, since a long flight and major surgery both make a blood clot more likely.
ASPS says rhinoplasty results are long lasting. It also says the face, including the nose, changes slowly as the body ages.
Healthdirect says you may not get the exact outcome you hoped for, and more surgery may be needed. ASPS lists an unsatisfactory nasal appearance among the risks.
ASPS says good candidates have finished facial growth, are physically healthy and do not smoke. They also have realistic goals. Healthdirect suggests asking your surgeon about the risks for someone in your state of health and stage of life.
No. Beauty Link is free for patients, and your nose hospital pays Beauty Link instead.
Sources: healthdirect Australia, NHS, American Society of Plastic Surgeons, Beauty Link team records