If bones were broken during your surgery, you will need to avoid injury to your nose for about 3 months. In 3 to 4 weeks, you should have a good idea as to what your nose will look like. It can take up to a year to see the final result.
After about three weeks, you'll likely have no readily apparent signs that you ever had surgery, and can resume non-weight-bearing exercise. At three months, almost all swelling has gone down permanently, and the nose looks basically like the final result.
THREE MONTHS. After 3 months, around 80-90% of recovery is complete. The skin that was redraped over the nasal bone and cartilage will continue to shrink, fitting snugly over the newly sculpted nasal contours. Most patients can clearly see what their final results will be at this point in time.
How Long Does Swelling Last After a Rhinoplasty? Most swelling subsides within the initial few weeks, and you'll likely see a dramatic drop off within the first month. However, residual swelling can last 6 months to a year. While you may not even notice this minor swelling, your results will continue to take shape.
Because this procedure enhances the symmetry and aesthetic appearance of your nose — the central and most protruding part of the face — it ultimately improves the overall harmony and composition of the other facial features without directly changing them.
This means that the structure, shape, and profile of the face determines how the other facial features fit together. The size, shape, or look of your nose can make or break the facial harmony due to the critical position it occupies. If the nose is too big, crooked, flat or straight, it impacts the entire face.
Nostrils are Too Wide or Asymmetrical
As a prominent feature, any mistake on the nose is highly noticeable. Disproportionate or asymmetrical nostrils are a common sign of a bad nose job and can be easily prevented with exceptional skill and a strong sense of aesthetics.
Your surgeon may have removed an excessive amount of tissue from your nose tip in an attempt to raise your entire nose. The resulting image is a “pig snout.” You may experience this temporarily as a result of post-surgery swelling. It usually disappears after a few weeks.
Swelling usually peaks at about two weeks after surgery and then, it slowly goes away over time as your body starts to make new channels to drain all the fluid. This can take up to a year or more in some people. Even though it can take up to a year, your nose will still look good during this time.
Common Concerns Following Rhinoplasty:
The tip of the nose often appears turned-up or “pig-like” at first. This is partially because of swelling in the upper lip and from taping. The tip will fall especially in the first 2 weeks and then more slowly after that.
Reach out to the surgeon who performed your rhinoplasty, clearly explaining what you are unhappy with, and ask them what could have caused the issue. If you are confident that your original surgeon can correct where they went wrong, discuss a revision rhinoplasty with them.
During healing after your rhinoplasty procedure, you may notice that your nose tip appears a bit asymmetric. This is quite normal, particularly if different parts of your nose are healing at different rates.
While the sensation of hard-feeling skin can be off-putting for patients, this hard skin is typically neither visible nor permanent. The nose, especially the tip, will remain hard for several months after surgery, after which the tissue will begin to soften as the remaining swelling fades.
Months 6-12: Within a year, most people can see the final results of their rhinoplasty procedure. Any changes that take place during this time are usually quite subtle. Typically, the swelling has gone down, any repositioned cartilage has settled, and the reshaped skin has conformed to the new structure.
One potential cause for bulbous appearance of the nose is the development of scar tissue at the nasal tip. This does not occur right away, but rather may develop over time. Sometimes injection of steroid may be of benefit. You may wish to consider consulting with your original surgeon.
The nasal tip is also directly connected to your nose's underlying cartilage, and is therefore dependent on the healing of this tissue. For most patients, swelling may vary day-to-day during the first few months following your rhinoplasty.
The reality is that many rhinoplasty and revision rhinoplasty patients can appear wider at 3 weeks out than they did before surgery. This can be especially noted if grafting was performed as part of your nasal reshaping process. Stay calm and allow the healing process to unfold.
It can take a while for the skin to re-blanket the nose and for us to see the definition, especially if we are narrowing the tip. Because of that, the nose can look bigger. However, If the patient has thin skin and a very bony, structural nose, once we take down that structure, it immediately looks smaller.
By about 3 or 4 months post-surgery, the swelling will have completely subsided, and the tip of your nose will show more refinement. This is when you will begin to see the true changes that were created during the procedure.
Typically, the swelling will peak the second or third day after your surgery. Generally, it will be worse when you first arise in the morning—proof that it's better to remain elevated as much as possible.
After about 6 weeks your nose will be roughly as strong as it was before the operation. The strength of the nose returns faster than the sensitivity subsides. So, even though the nose may be quite strong, it will still feel quite delicate and sensitive to the touch.
If you've been watching your rhinoplasty heal over time and you're still thinking “I don't like my nose”, it's not unheard of. As many as 10-15% of cosmetic nose surgeries result in unhappy clients who will choose to undergo a second procedure to fix it.
Your nose is susceptible to damage as it heals from the rhinoplasty so it is important to follow the advice given by your surgeon to facilitate your healing. Take a look at some of the ways you can avoid causing damage to your nose as it heals: Avoid strenuous activities.
If the shape of the nose deviates from this significantly after surgery, it may look unnatural and artificial. Most commonly, this occurs with aggressive reduction rhinoplasty in which the bridge is lowered too much to scoop the nose, the tip is over-elevated, and the nostrils pinched inward.