Anthropometric Study of Alar Cartilage in Asians

Measurements of 52 alar cartilages in 26 Koreans were obtained for an anthropometric study during primary open-approach rhinoplasties. The lateral crura were found most commonly to be concave, exhibited in 40% of the male patients and in 50% of the female patients. The medial crura were most often straight, found in 56% of the male patients and in 46% of the female patients. The average length, width, and thickness of the lateral crura were 19.7 mm, 10.5 mm, and 0.55 mm, respectively, in men; and 16.8 mm, 9.8 mm, and 0.54 mm, respectively, in women. The lengths of the columellar and footplate segments of the medial crura were 10.0 mm and 7.8 mm in men, and were 8.0 mm and 6.3 mm in women. These data suggest that the alar cartilage in Asians, contrary to popular myth, is not markedly smaller than that of whites. However, differences were found in the configuration of the cartilage and the length of the footplate of the medial crus.