How Do I Know if I Have an Infection After Revision Rhinoplasty?

Without a physical exam it is difficult to diagnose exactly is going on. Signs of infection are: fever, chills, night sweats, redness, swelling, pain. If you are experiencing any of these, please call your surgeon immediately. Your description might be of a suture cyst. If your surgeon used absorbable sutures and one is located close to the skin, if your body does not dissolve the suture, it can sometimes try to push it out, causing some inflammation and a little bump. Regardless, I would immediately contact your surgeon. Your surgeon should be happy to see you in person to examine you and remove a stitch if needed, or to diagnose infection and treat you appropriately. Always contact your surgeon right away if you have concerns about your healing process, because your surgeon knows exactly what transpired surgically and therefore, he or she is the best person to help you afterwards.

Thank you for your question. In general the signs of infection are inflammation, discharge or pain. I lump would not necessarily indicate infection. Whilst it is unlikely that you have infection, it is serious and so if you have any doubts then I would see your surgical team. 

You do need to follow through with your surgeon because a simple examination may answer your question immediately.  But infection is rare, especially when the grafts are all from your own body.  A month and a half is still early enough that even routine swelling is a possibility.  So don't think the worst, and share your concerns with your surgeon as early as possible.

 

If you're concerned about an infection you should visit with your surgeon for an examination. A bump inside your nose could be due to other things, but it really would take a check up to determine what's going on.

At only a month and half following secondary rhinoplasty with rib cartilage, you are still very early in your recovery.  It is not uncommon to have a great deal of swelling at this point that can be palpable in certain areas.  This swelling does not always resolve symmetrically and may be more prominent on one side than the other.  It is also common to have still have some discomfort such as occasional stinging pain because cartilage takes a long time to completely heal.  There could also be scar tissue forming, especially following a revision rhinoplasty.  Sometimes scar formation or prolonged swelling can be addressed with steroid injection during the healing process.  Infection would typically present as redness, warmth, worsened pain, drainage with foul smell, fever, and overall not feeling well.  When these symptoms of infection are present, they warrant an immediate in-person physical examination.  I would recommend following up with your revision rhinoplasty surgeon to express your concerns.  Good communication between patient and surgeon is very important both before and after surgery.  Best of luck in your recovery!
Ziyad Hammoudeh, MD