Does No Pain After Rhinoplasty Means Less Swelling on the Nose?

Question

Does no pain after rhinoplasty means less swelling on the nose?

Gregory Turowski, MD, PhD, FACS · Answer

Usually patients report very little pain after the rhinoplasty procedure. They more talk about breathing discomfort right after the surgery, dry mouth, bruising and swelling. There is no really correlation between very little pain and swelling. Some patients experience a lot of swelling some not so much. Cold compresses will help to reduce the residual swelling. Make sure you keep your head elevated after the surgery while resting and follow your surgeon’s instruction.

William Portuese, MD · Answer

In general, the rhinoplasty procedure is not a painful operation and many patients will take only a few pain pills for the first two days after the procedure. However, the amount of pain a patient experiences depends upon their inherent threshold for pain, which is quite variable amongst individuals. The main reason nose surgery is not very painful is that we no longer put packing inside the nose. Any time packing has been placed inside the nose, it becomes a much more painful recovery and a stronger pain medication is required. Packing the nose is only required for uncontrolled postoperative nosebleeds.

Richard J. Brown, MD · Answer

No. It depends on how much you had done. When I have to break bones things swell more. When I perform more simple operations like just taking down the bump on top things may swell less. It really depends on what you had done, and whether it was an open or closed Rhiniplasty. Keep in mind swelling can linger for up to one year. Yep, one year. Most of it will go down by 6-8 months. If you are having minimal pain then congratulations, you are the exception, not the rule!!

Barry L. Eppley, MD, DMD · Answer

Pain and swelling after rhinoplasty are variable and not necessarily related. Usually more swelling, bruising and discomfort occur in rhinoplasties in which osteotomies of the nasal bones are done. Many tip rhinoplasties have little to no discomfort yet they make have a fair amount of tip swelling.

Peter E. Johnson, MD · Answer

Rhinoplasty is not a particularly painful procedure, and we cannot tell you that there is a relationship between the amount of swelling and pain experienced after. Some might swell more than others, and individual's experience pain differently. Let's hope you have the least pain and no swelling, too.

M. Vincent Makhlouf, MD, FACS · Answer

Most of the pain in rhinoplasty is due to the work on the bones. Cartilage work is non tender and the incisions are not painfull unless pulled on. Many patients do not complain of any significant pain just dicomforrt from packing and swelling inside.

Richard W. Fleming, MD (retired) · Answer

There is a correlation between the amount of swelling and the severity of pain. Having said that pain will also depend on other things such as what is done during the operation and your own pain threshold. Pain after a rhinoplasty is controlled with analgesics after the operation.

Does No Pain After Rhinoplasty Means Less Swelling on the Nose?

Answers (7)

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