Self-esteem and Attitude Toward Body Appearance Before and After Cosmetic Rhinoplasty

the current study aimed to investigate self-esteem and attitude toward body appearance before and after cosmetic rhinoplasty surgery. In this pretest-posttest semi-experimental design، simple accidental sampling method was used in all patients referred for rhinoplasty surgery at the Amir Alam hospital and also at a private clinic in Tehran during the second half of 2010. Patients included in the study were those who had sought rhinoplasty surgery for cosmetic (not medical/reconstructive) reasons. 40 participants completed demographic questionnaires، and the Cooper-Smith self-esteem and Appearance Schema Inventories. There were no differences in mean self-esteem scores before and after surgery. However، there was a significant difference in mean bodily appearance scores pre versus post surgery (t=3. 01، df=39، p<. 05) and gender did not influence this difference. Cosmetic Rhinoplasty surgery plays a role in improving psychological attitude toward bodily appearance and it seems that psychological factors play an important role both in seeking cosmetic rhinoplasty and in its outcome. Hence consideration of psychological factors prior to cosmetic rhinoplastic surgery is crucial.