Deformed Face Structure Due to Rhinoplasty Swelling?

Question

It has been 2 months since my Rhinoplasty surgery and my nose is still very swollen. Not only that, the more swollen and deformed my nose looks, the more deformed my face structure gets. When the sides of my nose flattens my whole face gets long, droopy, and flabby. I used to have very visible cheekbones but they are totally gone. My whole face structure, including my eyes have changed. On rare occasions, when my nose looks good, thinner, and refined (how it should be), my face is back to normal. But that's not often enough. The week after the surgery, when the nurse took off the cast, I looked great--it was my face with a beautiful nose. But a couple of hours later, it widened, swelled, got upturned and totally deformed. It pretty much stayed like that these past two months.I look like a different person and i cant take it anymore. All i wanted was a nice nose not a nasty face. When will the swelling or whatever it is that is deforming my nose and face heal? How much longer do i have to deal with this?

David Shafer, MD, FACS · Answer

In most cases, swelling after rhinoplasty can take months to resolve. That said, it is unusual for you to have total facial changes after rhinoplasty due to swelling. I agree that, as you say, when the swelling was gone, everything looked good. It will just take time for the swelling to resolve. I hope you are following closely with your surgeon and addressing your issues. Good luck.

Otto Joseph Placik, MD · Answer

IT takes several weeks if not several months to see the final results of your rhinoplasty.
IT is also not unusual to have some swelling of the face in the early 1-2 weeks after surgery but not 2 months.
The description of your face being "nasty" seems very dramatic and is very unusual if only a rhinoplasty was performed. Are you having any additional symptoms to suggest that the rest of your face was affected by the surgery such as infection. bleeding, adverse medication reaction, filler injections, etc.?

Eric M. Joseph, MD · Answer

Dear Lizloo92,
I read your question and your review. You need to be a bit patient, and you'll likely love your result. You said in your review that your nose and face looked good when there was less swelling. It will eventually all go away, and you'll be able to enjoy your new look.
Best regards.

Steven Wallach, MD · Answer

Swelling after rhinoplasty may take up to a year to go away.  You have to be a bit patient.  Everyone's welling is different, and some patients take longer than other.

Ricardo Izquierdo, MD (retired) · Answer

The way your nose looked after the removal of the cast is almost (85-90%) what your final result will look like.  The last 15% of swelling can fluctuate (as you've seen yourself) and may take anywhere from 3 to 6 months or more to calm down.  Skin quality may also affect how much swelling you hold and for what length of time it takes to come down totally.
The fact that you've seen your nose come down at times implies that your body is still "working" on the healing process.  We can't control the healing process which varies from person to person.  Be patient.

Deformed Face Structure Due to Rhinoplasty Swelling?

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