What to expect after surgery:
o You usually can go home the same day after a rhinoplasty.
o Sometimes we need to harvest cartilage from one or both of your ears.
o We often use cartilage from a human cadaver source that has been sterilized and cleaned for use in this type of surgery.
o You will have plastic/silicone splints (Doyle splints) on the inside of your nose. These sometimes make it hard to breathe through your nose. We remove them 1 week after your surgery.
o You will have a splint on the outside of your nose. This will be removed at your follow up appointment. Sometimes it falls off earlier and that’s ok.
o Sometimes there is swelling and bruising around the eyes.
o Parts of your nose will feel numb after surgery. This generally goes away with time.
Activity:
o No strenuous activity until you have been cleared by your surgeon.
o No nose blowing for 3 weeks.
o Sleeping with your head slightly elevated during the first several days will help reduce the swelling.
o No contact sports for 6 weeks.
Diet:
o You can resume a regular diet after surgery, unless surgery was performed inside your mouth at the same time. Ask your surgeon to clarify your diet if you had surgery inside your mouth.
Wound Care:
o Saline nasal spray can be used to spray inside each nostril to help clean the silicone splints.
o A small amount of antibiotic ointment should be applied to the incision twice a day for 3 days. After 3 days, you should apply Vaseline, instead of antibiotic ointment.
o You want to try to keep the splint on the outside of the nose clean and dry. If it gets wet, it can sometimes fall off early.
o 24 hours after surgery, it is ok for soap and water to gently run over the surgical site behind the ear. You can gently clean under the tip of the nose with a q-tip with water and with a mixture of water and peroxide to keep the scabs from forming.
Antibiotics:
o Antibiotics MUST be taken as prescribed. Typically, the course of antibiotics is for 5 days. If you develop a rash or other side effects, stop the antibiotic and contact our office.
Bleeding:
o Some oozing of blood from inside the nose is expected after surgery. The oozing may persist for up to 24 hours.
o If there is persistent bright red bleeding, then please contact our office or go to the emergency room.
Pain Management:
o We put long-acting numbing medicine in and around the nose and it should last about 5-6 hours.
o Some discomfort is expected after surgery. The goal is to minimize the discomfort so that it is tolerable. It is unrealistic to expect zero pain after surgery, but we will work with you to minimize the discomfort as much as possible.
o Usually, over the counter Tylenol and ibuprofen does a great job at controlling pain.
o Very few people actually need to take a narcotic pain medicine. Narcotics have real risks and side effects such as nausea and vomiting, constipation, drowsiness and addiction. However, if there is severe pain that is not well controlled with ibuprofen and Tylenol, then we can prescribe a small amount of prescription pain medication. Take the narcotic pain medication exactly as prescribed to avoid a complication.
o Never exceed the maximum daily dose that is described in the over-the-counter instructions.
Swelling:
o Swelling is normal after surgery. It is normal for swelling to increase for the first 2-3 days after surgery and then reach its peak and start to lessen.
o Swelling in the nose can take a very long time to totally resolve; sometimes several months.
Sutures:
o You will have sutures on the inside of your nostrils and on the part that connects your lip to the tip of your nose. Some sutures are non-resorbable and will be removed at your 1 week follow up appointment.
o Resorbable sutures placed at the surgical site will dissolve/resorb on their own after about 7-14 days.