Rhinoplasty (Nose Job) FAQ's - Dr. Roberto Garcia ContouraContoura Facial Plastic Surgery

Hi, I'm Doctor Roberto Garcia, and I've been asked to talk about what are the three most common concerns that our patients have before, during, and after rhinoplasty. Number one being whether they're going to have pain. Number two, when can they get back to work, and number three when will I begin to see the results from rhinoplasty.

In all my years of doing rhinoplasty I can tell you that I've never had to prescribe a narcotic medication. If properly done, and without the use of any kind of nasal packing, patients will have no pain. Generally speaking I have my patients take Tylenol for several days before the surgery, and then take Tylenol for several days after surgery. That allows them to have that control of the pain and the swelling. The question of when they can get back to work is generally about a week. One week I remove the splints and the tapes. At that point patients will have just a small amount of bruising in the inner corners, which is usually gone by 10 days. As a result, patients can cover up those bruises with a little bit of makeup and at between a week and 10 days patients can get back to work depending on the type of work that they do. Lastly are the results.

When I take the bandages off at one week, I instruct patients that they are seeing 50% of the swelling at that point. Over the next seven to eight, sometimes 12 months, the bruising and or the swelling will subside to where you have your final results at that time. Our post-operative pictures are taken anywhere from four to six months, so that gives you a pretty good indication as to when we feel comfortable saying that this is close to the final result. I hope that this clarifies a few questions that you might have about rhinoplasty. Have a great day.