7 Things To Know About Rhinoplasty

Many plastic surgeons do not perform rhinoplasty, but at my Scottsdale practice, it is one of our top procedures. Nose reshaping surgery is a great way to enhance a person’s overall attractiveness while maintaining the unique characteristics of their face. If you are interested in rhinoplasty, there are a few things you should be aware of beforehand.

1. Choose the right surgeon: Finding a board-certified surgeon that you trust is key to achieving optimal results. Board certification requires years of hands-on training followed by an exhaustive written and oral examination. Boards like the American Board of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons and the American Board of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgeons serve to endorse ethical plastic surgeons who demonstrate the highest standards for training and quality of care. Once you have found a board-certified surgeon, researching his or her experience and looking at their rhinoplasty patients’ before and after pictures can give you a good idea if the caliber of results meets your standards. You can see one of our patient’s results below:
   

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2. Prepare for swelling: Bruising and swelling are variable, and everybody heals differently. Keeping your head elevated as much as possible will help bring the swelling down. It is important to understand that, while your results will look very good after a few weeks, some swelling may linger for several months.
3. Expect some temporary side effects: It is not uncommon for your voice to change temporarily after surgery. Also, sometimes patients feel nausea after their procedure due to anesthesia and postoperative pain medication. Often swelling can cause temporary loss of smell, but this will go away once the swelling has decreased. Because the tissues of the nose have been manipulated, an increase in mucus and drainage can occur. Again, as your healing progresses, this should go away.
4. Take time off: You should expect to take off about 10 days of work. If you have a job that requires heavy lifting, you should take between 4 and 6 weeks off. Do not overexert yourself as this can slow healing.
5. Don’t wear glasses: You should avoid wearing glasses or sunglasses for a month after surgery. The pressure from your glasses can cause indentations or nasal deformities as the bone and cartilage heal.
6. Delay exercise: Don’t begin exercising for 3 to 4 weeks. Having said that, you should start walking around soon after your procedure to promote circulation and reduce the risk of blood clot formation.
7. Be patient with results: At first, you will likely have a cast on your nose, so you won’t be able to see what your nose looks like at all. (You can learn more about this nose dressing in a related blog post.) Your final results may take 12 to 15 months to develop. You will have a good idea of your result much sooner than this, but subtle changes can occur until around a year after surgery.

If you want to learn more about rhinoplasty or other facial plastic surgery in the Phoenix area, request a consultation online or call us at (480) 214-9955 to schedule an appointment.