In Edition Plastic Surgery's own consultation statistics for 2025, 82% of consultations were about revision surgery. What that internal figure means, what it cannot tell you, and the four things Dr. Daehee Han puts first when someone comes to Gangnam about a nose that did not turn out as hoped.
Hello from Edition Plastic Surgery Clinic & Dermatology in Gangnam, Seoul. If you are looking for a clinic abroad after a nose operation that did not go the way you hoped, you will see a lot of numbers on clinic websites. Some are useful. Some are hard to check. This article looks at one of Edition's own figures, explains exactly how it was counted, and is honest about what it can and cannot tell you.
In Edition's consultation statistics for January to December 2025, an internal count, 82% of consultations were about revision surgery. That figure describes who comes to the clinic to talk — it is not a success rate, a satisfaction score or a promise about any individual result. What it does tell you is that revision makes up a large share of the clinic's consultations, and that is worth knowing alongside a clear picture of how a revision is actually approached.
How was the 82% counted?
The figure comes from Edition's own consultation records for 2025 (January to December). It is the share of consultations that concerned revision surgery. It is an internal count by the clinic, and it should be read as the clinic's own record of its consultations rather than as an independent statistic.
It sits alongside another figure that is often quoted: Dr. Daehee Han has performed more than 4,500 nose operations in total between 2017 and 2025, counted from medical records. That total includes the clinics where he worked before Edition opened in 2023, so it is a figure for the surgeon, not for the clinic. When you see any case number on a clinic website, it is reasonable to ask the same three things: over what period, from what records, and whether it belongs to the surgeon or to the clinic.
What the figure does not tell you
It is worth stating plainly what 82% does not mean:
- It is not a success rate. A consultation is a conversation, and it does not always lead to surgery.
- It does not mean every revision is possible or advisable. A consultation may also end with a recommendation to wait, or to choose a different approach.
- It does not predict your result. Revision depends on the damage from earlier surgery, the tissue available and the individual nose.
Dr. Han has written that he avoids words such as "perfect", "permanent", "100% effect", "no side effects" and "the best", and prefers to explain possible changes and limits together. A figure like 82% belongs in that same spirit: a fact about the clinic's work, not a claim about outcomes.
What it does tell you
It tells you what kind of conversation you are likely to walk into. A clinic with a large share of revision consultations goes through questions such as: What was used in the first operation? What has happened to the tissue since? Can an implant be removed safely? Is there enough cartilage left? Is the skin thin? Is there contracture?
If you are considering a revision, those are exactly the questions you need asked about your own nose. If this is your first operation, it may still be useful to understand why first-surgery planning at the clinic talks so much about the long term — how a tip will sit in years, how the bridge and tip connect, and why material is chosen carefully.
What does Dr. Han put first in a revision?
Dr. Han wrote out, in his own words, four things he considers central to revision rhinoplasty at Edition. As the clinic presents them:
- Empathy for the anxiety and worry that follow a first operation that did not turn out as hoped.
- An accurate, systematic analysis of why the first result went wrong, to find a fundamental direction for correction.
- A design that considers the proportions and harmony of the whole face, not only the nose.
- Careful surgery and attention to detail, with the recovery process considered as well.
The second point is the one most worth understanding before you travel. A revision that only changes the shape without understanding why the first result happened risks repeating the same problem. That is why the analysis comes before the redesign.
How is the cause of the first result analysed?
The starting point is 3D CT. In revision, it is used to see the existing implant and the state of any contracture, alongside the bone and cartilage structure. A photograph shows the outside of the nose; the CT shows what lies underneath.
The examination adds what a scan cannot: how the skin feels, how thick it is, how the tip moves, and what the patient describes. Information about the first operation — the date, what was used, any infection or later procedures — helps where it exists. If you do not have records, tell the clinic what you know; the CT and examination are still the basis of the plan.
In Dr. Han's written answers, several patterns come up again and again. A step between an implant and the tip, he has explained, can appear when the tip drops and breaks the connection with the bridge. A hump that seems to have "come back" can be the tip having dropped rather than the bone growing. Gore-Tex, he has noted, is harder to remove than silicone and the skin can become thin, so more care is needed. Each of these is a different cause with a different plan.
How many revisions are possible?
Is this a worry if you have already had more than one operation? Edition's answer is not a number. In the clinic's own words, the safe number of revisions depends less on the count and more on the degree of damage caused by previous surgery. Revision after several operations is judged according to the individual condition.
That answer can be frustrating if you were hoping for a simple yes or no. It is also the honest one: two people on their third revision can be in very different situations.
What materials are used in revision?
In revision, the existing implant is usually removed because the bridge and tip are rebuilt. Edition gives priority to the patient's own tissue where it suits — rib cartilage, septal cartilage and dermis — and uses autologous rib cartilage in revision, including for contracture and asymmetry. Where an implant is used, it is silicone shaped to the patient's bone structure. The choice depends on what the CT and examination show.
The fourth of Dr. Han's points is reflected in how the clinic describes its approach to dissection in revision: careful dissection that keeps tissue damage to a minimum. Revision surgery takes time; operating time for rhinoplasty at Edition is 1.5 to 3.5 hours depending on the plan.
What should I bring if I am coming from abroad for a revision?
- The date of each previous operation, and anything you know about what was used.
- Clear photos of your nose now, from the front, the side and at an angle, in good light.
- A description of what bothers you — shape, breathing, redness, a visible edge, a step, a tip that has changed.
- Any history of infection or later procedures such as fillers or threads.
You can send this before booking through WhatsApp — Edition runs a WhatsApp number for English-speaking patients — or KakaoTalk. Medical and surgical consultation, the operation and follow-up are handled by Dr. Daehee Han directly. General cost enquiries are handled by the patient coordinator. Patients who live abroad are often recommended to stay in Korea for about 7 to 10 days after rhinoplasty, and your follow-up schedule is explained at consultation.
How can I compare numbers between clinics fairly?
When you look at several clinics, numbers will rarely be counted the same way. A few questions make them comparable:
- Whose number is it? A surgeon's total over a career is different from a clinic's total since it opened.
- Over what period? "2017 to 2025" tells you more than "thousands".
- From what source? Medical records, consultation records and self-reported surveys are different kinds of evidence.
- What does it describe? A count of consultations, a count of operations and a measure of results are three different things.
Applied to Edition: more than 4,500 is Dr. Han's own total of nose operations, from medical records, for 2017 to 2025, including clinics before Edition. The 82% is a share of the clinic's 2025 consultations, from its own consultation statistics. Neither is a measure of results.
What does a revision consultation at Edition involve in practice?
A revision consultation brings the points above together. 3D CT is taken to see the bone and cartilage structure, the existing implant and any contracture. Dr. Han examines the nose and goes through the history of previous operations. The cause of the current result is discussed before any new design, and then the plan — what would be removed, what would be rebuilt, with which tissue — is explained. General cost enquiries are then handled by the patient coordinator.
If you are travelling from abroad, it helps to schedule this early in your stay, so that there is time to think about the plan before any surgery date.
Why is the analysis of the cause put first?
Because two noses that look similar from the outside can have very different causes underneath. A step at the junction of the bridge and tip, a crooked line, a short-looking nose or a tip that has changed shape can each come from different problems — an implant, cartilage that has shifted, contracture, thin skin. A plan that treats the appearance without identifying which of these is present may not address what produced it.
That is the practical meaning of the second of Dr. Han's four points, and it is why revision at Edition begins with CT and examination rather than with a new design.
Frequently asked questions
Q1) What does the 82% figure mean?
A1) In Edition's consultation statistics for January to December 2025 (an internal count), 82% of consultations were about revision surgery. It describes the consultations, not results or success rates.
Q2) Is the 4,500-operation figure for the clinic?
A2) No. It is Dr. Daehee Han's total of more than 4,500 nose operations between 2017 and 2025, counted from medical records, including clinics where he worked before Edition opened in 2023.
Q3) I have had two operations already. Can I have another?
A3) That depends less on the number of operations and more on the degree of damage from previous surgery. It is judged after 3D CT and examination.
Q4) I do not have records from my first surgery. Is that a problem?
A4) Tell the clinic what you know. 3D CT shows the existing implant and contracture, and together with the examination it forms the basis of the plan.
Q5) Will my old implant be removed?
A5) In revision, the existing implant is usually removed because the bridge and tip are rebuilt. What replaces it — your own tissue, a silicone implant shaped to your bone structure, or both — depends on the examination.
Q6) Who will examine me?
A6) Medical and surgical consultation, the operation and follow-up are handled by Dr. Daehee Han directly. General cost enquiries are handled by the patient coordinator.
Recovery and results differ between individuals. Please make decisions after a full consultation with a specialist.
Revision rhinoplasty (autologous rib cartilage, implant removal) may cause swelling, bruising, nasal congestion, reduced sensation in the nasal tip, a visible step between the implant and the nasal tip, asymmetry, infection, and pain or scarring at the rib cartilage harvest site. Results may be limited depending on the extent of tissue damage from previous surgery. The degree and duration vary from person to person, so please consult your doctor thoroughly before deciding.