How soon after rhinoplasty is it safe to fly home?

How soon after rhinoplasty a patient can fly will depend on a variety of factors including what was done during surgery, was there simultaneous septal, sinus or other internal nasal surgery, and the duration of surgery. In most cases, patients can fly 7-10 days following rhinoplasty surgery. At this point, the external nasal splint and internal nasal splint/packing will have been removed, most of the swelling outside of the nose has resolved within the first few days, and any oozing of blood following surgery has stopped within the first day or so. When flying, it is important to keep saline nasal spray in case the nasal passages feel dry or irritated, and decongestant nasal spray such as Afrin or Otrivin if the inner ear tubes are blocked due to pressure changes during flying. It is important to discuss the use of these nasal sprays with your surgeon as they may have a preference on how early you can use them. With regards to the length of surgery and also the length of the flight, it is important to get up and walk frequently and also drink a lot of fluids to decrease the risk of a deep vein thrombosis (blood clot on the leg or thigh) and pulmonary embolism (blood clot dislodges and travels to the heart). Both of these are extremely rare complications after nasal surgery but serious. If you are travelling to have surgery and don't know anyone who could stay with you after surgery, you may be able to hire a personal support worker (PSW) to stay with you a few days after surgery.When planning your travel after surgery, it is important to discuss this with your surgeon as they will have recommendations regarding the timing and how long they require you to stay 'in town' following surgery. Your surgeon may also have a PSW service that they could recommend.

Thanks for the question. You should be able to flying by 1-2 weeks after your surgery. But this is valid only with assuming postoperative recovery is uneventful. If any unexpected incident happens in your treatment process, this time can be extended or shortened. I wish you all the best.

It is advisable to stay in town for at least 7 days after Rhinoplasty. This allows for early packing removal and cast/suture removal on postoperative day seven.

We suggest that our out-of-town patients stay nearby for at least the first week since there are at least a couple post-op visits in that time-frame. Airplane cabins are dry, so lots of nasal saline spray can help with comfort. Nasal congestion can make it harder to clear middle ear pressure, especially on descent, so we recommend a couple squirts of Afrin about 30 minutes before the flight. It lasts about 10-12 hours. I also suggest that patients get up and move about the cabin every hour or so to avoid DVTs (blood clots in the deep veins of the legs...a risk after any surgery).
Even after the first week, there are a number of important post-op visits that we like patients to attend, so it's important to be flexible with any travel schedule.
All the best,
--DCP

This depends on what procedures were performed. With a tip rhinoplasty, you could theoretically fly home immediately. However, with extensive septal, turbinate and/or sinus work it may be best to wait 10 days when the risk of bleeding and infection are tremendously lower.

Airplane cabins are pressurized and I have had people fly back and forth from NYC for their appointments. On the day of surgery, you would need to be in NYC, and depending on the extent of the needed operation you may be able to fly home as early as the next day, or on the far side 5 to 7 days.

No heavy lifting or bending over, to avoid increasing pressure in your head which could cause a bloody nose. On the day of the surgery we can arrange for a private nurse to escort you to your hotel and stay with you an appropriate amount of time.

 The issue of importance is being able to clear your ears on decent of the plane. We have our patients spray Afrin in their nose 10-15 minutes prior to decent.

Hi New,
What's new?
For my patients, it is okay to fly about 5 days after out of town rhinoplasty, although the longer they wait the better. You need to confirm the amount of time with your rhinoplasty surgeon. On the firth day after rhinoplasty, the splint and any stitches are usually removed.
The main risk of flying is bleeding from the cabin pressure change. The other downside is having limited follow up with your surgeon. Sometimes arrangements can be made in your hometown with an ENT or facial plastic surgeon who can see you in the immediate follow up period.
It is better if you have someone stay with you the first night. Your surgeon should be able to contact a nursing service to stay with you one night.
Good luck and enjoy your new nose.
Dr. P

In my practice, I routinely treat patients from other countries and other parts of the United States. I routinely allow them to fly home 7 to 10 days after surgery and they have no problems. 

In my practice, I have patients stay in the area for seven days after rhinoplasty. This gives them some time to start healing and allows me to make sure that there are no early complications after the surgery. Flying earlier means that if an infection or post-operative bleeding were to develop, you would not have the doctor there to treat you. the length of the flight is not as important as the timing of it. Patients should not recover alone after surgery, especially the first night. I require an aid to stay with the patient at least or the first 24 hours.