Patients seeking cosmetic rhinoplasty (“nose jobs”) often exhibited personality abnormalities, including obsessiveness, hypochondriasis, and making false statements that make them look better compared with others (“good faking”), according to a new study published in the July 2007 issue of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery.

Using the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), the Iranian authors of the study evaluated the personalities of 66 rhinoplasty candidates with the intention of determining what their rate of satisfaction with the results of the procedure would be.

None of the rhinoplasty patients rated as “normal” under the MMPI, compared with 40 percent of the control group who did. Rhinoplasty patients also exhibited a substantially greater rate of “negative” personality traits. Twenty-three percent were labeled “obsessive;” 20 percent rated as hypochondric; 20 percent rated as “good faking;” and 12 percent rated as “bad faking” (making statements that make your situation worse than it really is).

These traits were then used to measure a correlation between a person’s personality and their satisfaction with the result of their rhinoplasty. Patients who scored as “good faking” and “depressed” expressed the highest rate of satisfaction. The patients with the lowest rate of satisfaction were those who scored as “obsessive,” “psychasthenic” (excessive doubts, compulsions, obsessions, and unreasonable fears), and “anti-social;” the study’s authors believe this indicates that people with these personality traits are not well-suited for cosmetic rhinoplasty.

Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery is the official scientific journal of the American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery (AAO-HNS). The study’s authors are Ramin Zojaji, MD; Maryam Javanbakht MD; Alireza Ghanadan, MD; Hosien Hosieni, MS; and Hasan Sadeghi, PhD. Zojaji, Javanbakht, Hosieni, and Sadeghi are association with the Azad Medical University in Mashad, Iran; Alireza is associated with the Tehran Medical University in Tehran, Iran.

About the AAO-HNS
The American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery (http://www.entnet.org), one of the oldest medical associations in the nation, represents more than 12,000 physicians and allied health professionals who specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of disorders of the ears, nose, throat, and related structures of the head and neck. The Academy serves its members by facilitating the advancement of the science and art of medicine related to otolaryngology and by representing the specialty in governmental and socioeconomic issues. The organization’s mission: “Working for the Best Ear, Nose, and Throat Care.”

Source: American Academy of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery (AAOHNS)