Freer Nasal Knife — Caudal Columellar Incision

Freer Nasal Knife — for the Caudal Columellar Cut

The Freer nasal knife with a short angled blade is the instrument with which the caudal columellar incision is made — the first cut of a closed-approach septoplasty, through the membranous septum just behind the caudal edge of the septal cartilage. The angled tip lets the operator follow the cartilage edge under direct vision through the speculum, and the short blade does not over-shoot into the vestibular skin.

The incision and what follows

A clean caudal columellar cut produces flaps that close primarily without tension; a ragged cut produces a notch that becomes visible as a healed scar in the vestibule. The Freer is the knife the senior surgeon uses for this step because its short angled blade gives the haptic control a longer scalpel does not.

Pairing

Used immediately before the Freer elevator — the same instrument family is sized to the same vestibular dimensions, so the operator does not change visual register between cut and elevation.