Rhinoplasty (Nose) Surgery Recovery

Rhinoplasty is the most common plastic surgery procedure used to reshape the nose. Rhinoplasty can reduce or increase the size of your nose, alter the shape of the nose tip or the nose bridge, shorten the nose, taper the width of the nostrils and modify the angle formed by your nose and the upper lip. Rhinoplasty, generally known as nose job, also rectifies a birth imperfection and is also used in alleviating certain breathing problems. The surgery takes approximately two hours but the operative time may be higher if the surgery involves complex procedures.
 After rhinoplasty procedure, initially you might feel sore. Starting from the first day to several days after rhinoplasty, the swelling and bruising increases. Rhinoplasty recovery is always linked with black eyes. The rhinoplasty patient is advised to apply cold compresses in adjoining area of the nose. Rhinoplasty if performed by qualified hand, always leads to satisfactiory results. The follow-up procedure must be adhered to in the recovery phase so as to obtain long-term results.
A look at various recovery parameters show that the level of pain is moderate to severe and requires about 2-12 days of pain medication. The swelling and bruising remain for 2-7 weeks for closed rhinoplasty surgery and 2- 7 months for open rhinoplasty technique. The numbness is felt at the tip of nose and tip healing takes about a month to recover. In the recovery phase the bandage must be changed in 5 – 10 days. You can go for exercises like swimming after about 2 months . Th final result comes up after 3-4 months and use of sunblock is must for initial few months.   
The recovery phase gives an ugly face appearance that might lead to an initial feeling of depression in the rhinoplasty patients. In the post-operative recovary the nose may look uneven, bent, swollen ,bruised ,numb and painful.
 You must follow some instructions for a speedy rhinoplasty recovery. Apply cold compresses frequently in the adjoining area or as prescribed by your surgeon. You must avoid nasal medications for around 2 months. Generally the surgeons direct the use of saline spray for 15 days. Keep the head elevated as compared to the body level in order to reduce the swelling. During recovery, you must avoid blowing or picking your nose for at least a month to reduce bleeding and slow healing.
After a nasal surgery a splint is generally applied to the nose to preserve the desired shape. In the recovery, nasal packs and plastic splints are kept in the nostrils in order to stabilize the septum. The nose is packed for less than a week and for a better recovery from swelling, ice packs over your eyes for the initial 2 days is recommended. Recovery from pain is achieved by pain medication and sedatives. The recovery progresses at a fast pace once the splint are removed by the surgeon during your postoperative visit. If you have intake a large amount of blood during the procedure, you might vomit post-operatively. The initial stools might be dark in color due to blood. You must take adequate rest in addition to a good diet during your recovery phase so as to ensure that your nose recovers properly. If a revision surgery is needed make sure that it is performed earlier.

Summary:  The nose is delicate organ and you can considerably reduce the likelihood of complications and secondary surgery if you follow doctor's advice during recovery phase.