Cartilage

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Cartilage is a connective tissue with great strength but also flexibility.  Cartilage tends to be mainly located between joints and bones, as well as in facial areas such as the nose and ears; essentially anywhere in the body that requires extra flexibility or movement.

There are three main types of cartilage that are found in various parts of the body; elastic, hyaline and fibrocartilage.  Cartilage is different to other tissues in that it doesn’t contain blood vessels.  While this can be advantageous in cosmetic surgical procedures in that it decreases likelihood of complications arising from damaged blood vessels, it also means that cartilage repairs at a slower rate to other body tissues.  Cosmetic procedures such as Rhinoplasty involve precise restructuring of cartilage inside the nose. 

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