- Eyelid Surgery
- Rhinoplasty
- Introduction
- Patient Photographs
- What to Expect After Surgery
- Complications
- Care After Surgery
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Submental Liposuction
- Chin and Jawline Enhancement
- Facelift
- Liposuction
- Male Breast Reduction
- Calf Augmentation
- Laser Hair Removal
- Complete Facial Rejuvenation
Rhinoplasty - Care After Surgery
- The splint is a semitransparent molded piece of plastic used to help protect the nose after surgery, especially when the nasal bones have been reset. If you had a tip rhinoplasty, you may not require a splint. The splint is removed in the office about five days after surgery. If it comes off before that time you may reapply it with tape, or come in to the office to have it reapplied. If it comes off after three days, just leave it off. Be careful not to inadvertently bump your nose. Use caution around children and elbows.
- Glasses. Contacts are okay, but glasses may cause undue pressure on the nose, and should be avoided (unless taped to the forehead or propped up on your cheeks) for one week.
- Sneezing or blowing the nose should be avoided for ten days after surgery. If you need to sneeze, do so with your mouth open. The tissues need to be healed sufficiently before they can tolerate the high pressures caused by sneezing.
- Elevation helps to reduce swelling. Use a recliner or prop your upper body up with extra pillows for the first two or three days after surgery.
- Ice packs help to reduce swelling and discomfort during the first 24 hours. Keep one in the freezer and one on your face, draped over the eyes and cheeks. Be careful not to dislodge the nasal splint or get it wet. The ice packs are most useful during the first night after surgery, when the potential for swelling is greatest. It is okay to use ice intermittently (for example, 20 minutes on, 20 minutes off), or not at all if you are comfortable and the swelling is minimal. Use a washcloth or layer of gauze between the ice and the skin so that it is not too cold on the skin.
- Bathing. You may start bathing and showering the day after surgery. You may also shampoo your hair, but be careful to keep the splint dry.
- Packing is rarely used in my practice, and in a growing number of other plastic surgeons' practices. However, when Vaseline® gauze packing is used, it comes out the day after surgery. Removal of the packing is uncomfortable and can cause tearing, but it is quick, and patients feel better immediately after it is removed.
- Dressing: A gauze "mustache dressing" is used under the nose after surgery to collect any oozing from the nose which occurs normally, especially during the first several hours after surgery. Apply a new gauze dressing when it becomes saturated, using paper tape to hold it in place. This dressing is also used after any packing is removed. When there is no longer any drainage on the dressing, it may be discontinued.
- Cleaning. Avoid trying to remove any clots from the inside of the nose, because this may cause bleeding. At the office, the nostrils will be cleaned with hydrogen peroxide. If there are incisions around the nostrils (to treat alar flaring) apply a small amount of antibiotic ointment with a Q-tip®. But don't stick the Q-tip back in the nose.
- Exercise. Avoid any strenuous activity during the first week after surgery. Vigorous exercise increases the blood pressure, causing more swelling,, and possibly bleeding. Usually, exercise can be resumed after one week, but avoid contact sports for at least two weeks until the nasal bones are firmly healed.
- Returning to work. Patients with office jobs usually return to work one week after surgery. However, there will still be swelling and bruising. Makeup may be used to help hide bruising. Patients who work at home, or have positions with minimal public contact, may return to work sooner if they desire, and if they are no longer taking painkillers. Patients with physical jobs should take two weeks off. However, if the tip alone is treated, without any bony work to the dorsum, there is very little bruising and patients can return to work sooner, even a few days after surgery.
