History of Rhinoplasty
Dr. Cory Torgerson conducts facial plastic surgery at his state-of-the-art private clinic in downtown Toronto
He is experienced in all areas of ear, nose, and throat surgery as well as facial cosmetic procedures. The medical professionals who pioneered the techniques that are used today would marvel if they toured his facility and saw the advancements that have taken place. Dr. Torgerson is considered a rhinoplasty expert and is an international teacher on the subject. You may be surprised that the birth of the “nose job” began centuries ago in ancient Egypt..
Rhinoplasty From Antiquity To Our Modern Era
3000 BC – An ancient Egyptian medical text, known as the Edwin Smith Papyrus, describes surgery to reconstruct facial features.
1550 BC – A second Egyptian medical papyrus, known as the Ebers Papyrus, is found detailing crude methods to repair and reshape the nose.
800 BC – An Indian physician known as Sushruta develops surgical techniques to repair and even replace noses. He publishes a detailed manual and is the first to describe using a skin flap, cut from the forehead, to lay over the nose and repair it for aesthetic purposes. Cutting off a person’s nose was punishment for a crime and also a cult practice in his era, so he had plenty of patients!
27 BC – 476 AD (Roman Empire) – Cornelius Celsus is the next surgeon to publish medical notes on his techniques for reconstructing noses and ears.
300 AD (Byzantine Era) – Oribasius, the royal physician, publishes extensive notes on using skin flaps in facial repair.
10th century – There is no record of rhinoplasty surgery for centuries until an Anglo-Saxon surgeon publishes a manual called the Leechbook.
Rhinoplasty In Our Era
11th century – An Arab physician named Usaibia translates Sushruta’s notes from Sanskrit into Arabic. Rhinoplasty surgery based on his ancient transcript becomes widespread in the Middle East and is adopted in the West by the 15th century.
16th century – A professor of surgery at the University of Bologna, named Tagliacozzi, publishes notes on the surgical repair of facial wounds in soldiers. He is the first to record using a pedicle flap in reconstruction.
18th century – East India Company surgeons named Cruso and Findlay watch rhinoplasty surgery taking place in India using Sushruta’s methods, which have been practiced for centuries. This causes a resurgence of reconstructive surgery in the West.
19th century – In 1887, Dr. John Orlando Roe is the first modern surgeon to perform saddle nose deformity rhinoplasty and record it in medical journals.
20th century – Notable pioneers in rhinoplasty surgery are Freer and Killian.
Throughout the last century, both open and closed methods of surgery have been perfected. Dr. Torgerson prefers to use the closed method, where incisions are hidden underneath the nose. If you are considering a change in your look, even a slight alteration to your nose can enhance your overall appearance and help you gain more self-confidence.
Rhinoplasty surgery has been practiced for centuries and has evolved in leaps and bounds to become the most popular type of facial plastic surgery performed today, so you can put your confidence in modern science and in the expert hands of Dr. Torgerson, a cosmetic facial expert.
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Our facility offers a luxurious, comfortable and private setting for consultations and surgery with a waiting room that is both spacious and inviting. Although we hope you don’t have to spend too much time waiting to see Dr. Torgerson, within a few minutes you will feel relaxed and at ease.