Instead of silicone — an autologous implant made from your own rib cartilage
When silicone is a concernRevision after inflammation or contracture
Rib cartilage particle implant · Basic / 3D Custom
Less burden of foreign-body reaction and contracture
Suitable after revision or inflammation
Natural feel and line
Your own rib cartilage is harvested and processed into micro-particles, then pressed into a mold matched to the shape of your nose to form an implant — a new type of autologous rhinoplasty that fully replaces silicone. Without artificial silicone, the burden of foreign-body reaction and inflammation is relatively low, and because it is your own tissue, it settles in without looking lifted or noticeable. You can choose between two ways of shaping the implant: Basic, made right away with a standard mold, and 3D Custom, using a mold custom-ordered from your CT data.
RIBFIT™
Rib cartilage particle implant
Your rib cartilage is processed into micro-particles and shaped to fit your nose
BASIC / 3D CUSTOM
The material, the surgery and the standard for results are the same. The only difference is whether the implant mold is custom-ordered in advance.
RIBFIT™ BASIC
The implant is made with a proven standard mold. After the CT diagnosis, surgery can be scheduled without waiting for a custom order, which suits those who want to reduce cost and preparation time. Even with a standard mold, the surgeon carves the implant by hand to fit your nasal structure before insertion, so it can be applied to a wide range of nose conditions.
RIBFIT™ 3D CUSTOM
A 3D mold is made to match your nasal structure based on CT data. A CT scan 2–3 days before surgery and a custom mold order are required, and the implant is formed to your nasal structure from the start.
| Basic | 3D Custom | |
|---|---|---|
| Material | Rib cartilage particles | Rib cartilage particles |
| Implant mold | Standard mold | CT-based personalized 3D mold |
| CT diagnosis | Required | Required |
| Preparation | Surgery can be scheduled right after diagnosis | CT scan and mold order 2–3 days before surgery |
| Operating time | Same | Same |
| Silicone | None | None |
Either option is decided with the surgeon after diagnosis, and whichever you choose, the surgical method and the standard for results are the same.
A note from Dr. Kim Hyung-taek
In more than 20 years of nose surgery, I have always weighed the same trade-off. Silicone gives a refined line but carries the burden of inflammation and contracture; autologous tissue is safe, but it can look blunt and its absorption is unpredictable. I worked with dermal grafts and with diced cartilage wrapped in fascia for more than ten years, yet no material let me have both at once.
What brought the answer back to mind was a patient from abroad with an autoimmune disease. Silicone was not an option, and the usual autologous techniques could not create the line the patient wanted. While I was racking my brain, I remembered a method that had only occasionally been used at university hospitals: processing rib cartilage into particles and pressing them into the shape of a nasal implant. The material is your own cartilage, yet the shape is as refined as an implant — exactly the combination I had been looking for. It was a eureka moment.
Back then there were hardly any companies that made molds, so I started by asking around and visiting them myself. How finely the particles are processed and how densely they are packed determines absorption and the quality of the result, so it took a great deal of trial and error to arrive at today's micro-particle method. We gave the method we had refined our own name: Rib for rib cartilage, Fit for a design that fits your nose — RIBFIT™. It is a very rare approach among private clinics, and we place it at the center of our dorsum surgery.
If you have thin skin, have experienced inflammation or contracture, or dislike implants but don't want a blunt bridge either, RIBFIT™ may be the answer. We will keep honoring the meaning of the name — creating the nose that suits each person best.
— Kim Hyung-taek
Autologous tissue rhinoplasty: dermal grafts, rib cartilage particles and rib cartilage particle implants compared, with a guide to choosingkowon plastic surgery
Dr. Kim Hyung-taek's 10 years of micro rib-cartilage-particle know-how
Because the particle size and pressing method are on a different level, more cartilage is packed densely into the same volume. That is why KOWON's RIBFIT™ shows less absorption and less deformation.
From CT diagnosis to the finished implant, the procedure follows four stages.
STEP 01 — Basic: standard mold / 3D Custom: CT-based custom mold
STEP 01
RIBFIT™ is autologous rhinoplasty in which your own rib cartilage is harvested, diced finely and formed into an implant shaped to your nose. Unlike laying a solid block of cartilage in place, working with particles carries far less risk of warping and gives a softer line.
STEP 02
The body recognises a silicone implant as foreign and forms a capsule around it; on occasion this leads to contracture, inflammation or visible show-through. Autologous tissue is part of your own body, so the burden of a foreign-body reaction is fundamentally lower, and over time it integrates with the surrounding tissue and keeps a natural feel.
STEP 03
Suited to those uneasy about a silicone implant; revision patients who have experienced implant inflammation or contracture; those whose skin is thin enough that an implant might show through; and those whose tissue has been weakened by repeated surgery. For anyone prone to inflammation, autologous tissue can be a particularly safe choice. If you want to reduce preparation time and cost, you can choose Basic; if you want an implant designed from your own nasal data from the start, you can choose 3D Custom.
STEP 04
Harvesting is done through a small incision of about 1.5–2 cm below the chest, and the scar sits where underwear covers it. Pain at the harvest site eases substantially within a few days, and we manage pain and follow the recovery so that daily life is not disrupted.
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BeforeAfter
BeforeAfterOutcomes and side effects vary from person to person. Bleeding, infection, swelling and asymmetry may occur. Please consult our medical team before making a decision.
RIBFIT™ · rib cartilage — 111 videos in which Dr. Kim explains the technique and real cases
Video 5 · RIBFIT™ / rib cartilage · Implant-free rhinoplasty (Korean original)
Video 239 · RIBFIT™ / rib cartilage · Implant-free rhinoplasty (Korean original)
Video 240 · RIBFIT™ / rib cartilage · Implant-free rhinoplasty (Korean original)
Video 241 · RIBFIT™ / rib cartilage · Implant-free rhinoplasty (Korean original)
Video 40 · RIBFIT™ / rib cartilage · Revision rhinoplasty (Korean original)Autologous cartilage is your own tissue, which favours integration and stability. Donor cartilage avoids the harvest, but its resorption rate can be relatively higher. The right material depends on age, tissue condition and surgical history, so it is decided after assessment.
Using a solid block of cartilage can lead to warping over time. Because RIBFIT™ builds the shape from diced cartilage, the risk of warping is greatly reduced.
Including the rib cartilage harvest it takes roughly 2.5–3.5 hours, and you go home the same day. We check your recovery on the day of surgery and again the following day.
The standard mold only sets the implant's basic shape. Before insertion, the surgeon carves it by hand to fit your nasal structure. Because the material and surgical method are the same as 3D Custom, how natural the result looks is managed to the same standard.
Based on your CT diagnosis, the surgeon explains the difference between the two options, and you decide together according to your priorities on preparation time and cost. The only difference is that 3D Custom requires a CT scan and a mold order 2–3 days before surgery.
Yes. CT is an essential step for accurately diagnosing the nasal bone and cartilage structure, so every patient has one regardless of the option. With 3D Custom, that CT data is also used to make the mold.
152 columns on RIBFIT™ · rib cartilage — the questions that come up most in the consulting room, written up by the doctor himself.
01Article 224450015036 · Nasal tip · RIBFIT™ / rib cartilage (Korean original)
#Nasaltip#RIBFIT™ribcartilage
2026. 10. 22.
02Implant-free nose surgery: How to create a nasal bridge line with autologous rib cartilage and autologous tissue
#RIBFIT™ribcartilage#Implant-free
2026. 10. 6.
03Pros and Cons of Autologous Rib Rhinoplasty — What Makes RIBFIT™ Different?
#RIBFIT™ribcartilage#Implant-free
2026. 7. 7.
04Autologous Rib Rhinoplasty — Why Tip Drooping Is Viewed Through Support Structure Before Height
#RIBFIT™ribcartilage#Nasaltip
2026. 6. 30.
05Implant-free rhinoplasty — can a low nose be raised without silicone? The autologous rib cartilage conditions seen through RIBFIT™
#RIBFIT™ribcartilage#Implant-free
2026. 6. 16.
06Is Autologous Rib Rhinoplasty Natural? — A Case Resolving a Drooping Tip and Low Glabella Together
#RIBFIT™ribcartilage#Nasaltip
2026. 5. 21.
07Ear cartilage rhinoplasty — how does it differ from septal and rib cartilage? Material selection criteria by nasal condition
#RIBFIT™ribcartilage#Deviatedfunctional
2026. 5. 19.
08Revision rhinoplasty — what criteria decide it? Checking structural change and why RIBFIT™ is considered
#RIBFIT™ribcartilage#Revision
2026. 4. 28.
09Upturned-nose correction — why the tip looks lifted and the criteria for considering autologous rib cartilage
#RIBFIT™ribcartilage#Nasaltip
2026. 4. 14.
10Pros and Cons of Donor Rib Cartilage — What Criteria Decide Cartilage Choice in Rhinoplasty?
#RIBFIT™ribcartilage
2026. 3. 29.
Consultation
Dr. Kim Hyung-taek takes personal responsibility from diagnosis through surgery and aftercare.
Book a 1:1 consultationOutcomes and side effects vary from person to person. Bleeding, infection, swelling and asymmetry may occur. Please consult our medical team before making a decision.
