Rhinoplasty - infection and swelling more than a year later

Thank you so much for your helpful insights Dr. Vartany and Dr. Persky! Indeed, I think that this is the problem. I discussed this with my surgeon and he said that he will have to remove a graft in order to resolve the problem. However, I did my surgery back home and will not be able to return for 12 months. Do you think that waiting for that long could have adverse results on the final shape of my nose? Would using steroid inhalers to minimize the swelling in the meantime be helpful? Many many thanks! Dara

hi dara, how is your nose? i also have an infection that appeared 4 months post op...i ve been on antibiotics for 7 weeks and with no change. i have pus oozing from my nose on a daily basis..im so drained. i may need another op to check to see if its the graft or nylon surtures causing the problem. well, i have five more days of antibiotics to take...my tip is very swollen and i have a cyst on my columella incision that need to be squeezed daily otherwise i have a huge cyst under my nose. im worried that my scar will never heal

dara, sorry to hear of this persistent swelling. i'm going through the same thing. i had revision and a graft put in five years ago,..for the first 3 years, inflammation was cured by antibiotics...now the last 2 have been miserable. It gets red hot, inflammed almost everyday now. I went to every dermatologist...steroid cream helps but since you can't use them for extended time periods, the swelling comes back two fold when discontinued. Steroid inhalers I tired which help,,once again when you stop..you know the deal. I even tried rosacea creams which help soothe when the hotness and swelling are just too much to cope with. That helps with the symptoms...however when it wears off it comes back. I found dryness (heaters, winter time..), drinking, anything that makes your blood vessels constrict, exacerbates this swelling, for dryness i use anything from saline nasal spray to vaseline... i read after rhinoplasty, a common symptom is nasal dryness, which can cause your mucous membranes to swell. This would be the bast case scenario, rather than remove a rejected graft. I went to my doctor two years ago and she practically laughed at my face, gave me antibiotics after much persistence. I feel embarrassed going back there, I don't want to be one of those-who think I need to be perfect, I don't it's just really irritating and uncomfortable. I feel that you get no support from others who never went through this. It's scary to be alone. I sincerely hope you find what's going on. Good luck to you!

I have had these exact same symptoms; the swelling with any temperature change. I had a rhinoplasty/turbinectomy in the summer of 04. I had a staph infection a few months after my surgery and a revision was done the following summer (one year later)to correct for a crease on the right side of my nose from the fluid from the infection pushing the bones apart. I feel like a crazy person. I have asked my doc and he thinks it's nerve pain. My allergist sends me to the PS. I have tried steroid sprays, neti pots, saline sprays. I do notice sometimes I get minimal relief from a hot shower and then laying on my back. It's as if the fluid needs to resettle? I'm so self conscious anymore about my swollen nose. Not to mention it's so uncomfortable. I have "babied" my nose ever since my surgery. I haven't a clue if I have an implant. Is that even worth asking?

I had a rhinoseptoplasty in July and everything healed and looked great for the first three months. Everything had solidified and softened. The bridge was thinned out and the tip had gotten significantly smaller. And then of course knowing my luck it starting feeling a little tingly and weird and i noticed it was starting to swell up (even more so than when the splint came off) The surgeon put me on an antibiotic and everthing went back to normal. But then the infection came back one week later and it wasn't as swollen as the initial infection but it definitely didn't look anything like it did before. The antibiotic didnt seem to do anything so I went back and insisted he put me back on another antibiotic. So ive been on like 3 courses of antibiotics and my nose is still all puffy and red. So I went back to see the doc and pestered him to do something so he gave me a shot of kennalog (sp)... that made it even worse and now it feels like all the bones are separated/collapsed and theres a dent in the middle. It looks like ive been punched in the face and i don't even look like myself. It sounds funny and all my friends laugh when i tell them about it but its really upsetting and i jsut want it to go back to normal. I feel like when i leave the house people are blatantly staring at it. The surgeon said he will probably have to go back in and make some adjustments in 4-6 months but it seems so far away. What difference would it make if he went in now as opposed to 6 months??? it still swells up and back down in a matter of hours. this is just ridiculousssssssss hellllpppppppppppp (but at least i still have my arms and legs and am functional) BUT STILL it sucks, its on my face.

I truly understand how all of you are feeling. However please do not have any regrets, the choices that we made were the choices that we made under the best knowledge we had at the time. Focus all your energies on trying to get the best out of the situation you find yourself in. Not trying to be patronizing, i know the desperation and helplessness plus the disregard of many conceited surgeons. But keep persevering and you will find an answer. Finally, i just wanted to share a product with you that has helped me as nasal dryness was a cause of many of my problems without me realising! A product called nozoil is something every rhinoplasty patient should know about. It promotes healing and in my case restored my mucous membraned to normal functionality. Why not give it a try, what is there to lose as it's totally natural. Anyhow, all the very best to all of you and don't give up.

Dear all, My nose remains swelled up. It must be one of two causes 1) Permenant nerve damage, causing continuous swelling or 2) My doctor placed non-dissolvable stitches in my nose, which might have caused tissue displacement after the infection. I have some minor bleeding when exposed to extreme weather condition. In a matter of two months, I will check back with my doctor, I am praying and hoping that its only the second reason.