Spain's Princess Letizia undergoes nose surgery: Royal Palace

0 Comments | AFP, August, 2008

MADRID (AFP) — Princess Letizia, the wife of the heir to the Spanish throne, Crown Prince Felipe, had surgery on her nose last week to fix a breathing problem, the Royal Palace said Friday.

The septorhinoplasty -- an operation to straighten the cartilage and bone that separates the nose into two sides -- was carried out by palace medical staff to fix a deviated septum, it said.

Patients with a deviated septum -- the wall between the left and right sides of the nose -- find that one side of their nose is wider than normal and one is narrower.

The consequences of a deviated septum can range from a mild impact on breathing to a complete lack of function of one or both nostrils.

Even if there is little or no breathing disturbances, a deviated septum can...