Revision Rhinoplasty
Why does it take a full year to see final rhinoplasty results?
We live in the age of microwave ovens and instant grits but we heal the way we heal, which just takes time. There is always some swelling present after surgery that needs to resolve. There is also a remodeling of scar tissue and other tissues going on and that just takes time.One of the hardest things to do as a patient and a surgeon is to wait for a final result. This is especially true with a rhinoplasty where you see the results every day when you look in the mirror. If things are not absolutely perfect right out of the gate, the inclination would be to go right back to the OR and fix it. If you give it some time, however, the problem will often resolve itself without the need for additional surgery. That was a valuable lesson that I learned from my father who had forty years of experience before he retired.
Is rhinoplasty very painful?
Everyone is different with regards to pain. I have done some major surgeries and had patients show up the next day telling me that they only needed tylenol. I have done other surgeries that were simple, but the patients seemed to have a lot more pain. In my twenty years of practice, I have never been able to determine a pattern for this. Rhinoplasty is the same way. Some people hurt more than others afterwards.
What is nasal packing?
Sometimes when the doctor does surgery on the inside of the nose to improve breathing or to correct a deviated septum, he may leave some packing with gauze in the nose to allow the lining of the inside of the nose to be pressed up against the cartilage for better healing. This may be a little bit uncomfortable for the patient. Fortunately, most packing is removed in a matter of a few days.
