It usually takes 2-3 weeks to recover from a rhinoplasty. A nasal splint is placed and worn for about a week after surgery. If an open rhinoplasty is performed, sutures are usually removed within 1 week. Residual bruising lasts for about 2 weeks, Residual swelling may last months, but the majority will go down after 2-3 weeks.
There is rarely any pain after the surgery. Most of my patients do not take any pain medication after the operation.
You will have a bandage on your nose for one week and some black and blue under your eyes that lasts a week to ten days. I will ask you not to do any vigorous exercise for three weeks, but you will be able to do all of your normal activities beginning the day after the operation.
You will see most of the results when the bandage comes off, but you may not see the final result in refinement of the tip of your nose for a few months after the operation.
I simply tell patients to avoid looking in the mirror for a few days. A lightweight cast is applied to the top of the nose to keep the cartilage and bone in place during healing, and gauze packing is inserted in the nose for one to two days to protect the septum from moving and to minimize bleeding. While I've known patients who have felt perfectly comfortable dining out at restaurants when wearing the cast, most people go into hiding for a few days while the bruising and swelling subside. The post-op feeling is generally not painful, just uncomfortable. You will want to apply ice and elevate the head, and after a week, the cast comes off. Despite the swelling and bruising, the results are immediate.
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