Recovery FAQs for Rhinoplasty

Rhinoplasty Recovery Q&A

Rhinoplasty methods vary depending on the individual’s nose and facial proportion. An X-ray is performed for the surgeon to be able to see the structure of the patient’s nose. Then the surgeon will examine you and make the surgery recommendations based on your nose shape. 

For surgery prices, please contact us for an online consultation.

Q: What is the minimum age for rhinoplasty?
A: Minimum age is 19 years old.

Q: Do you use rib cartilage or silicone for the nose bridge?
A: We only use silicone implants for nose bridge extension.

Q: Do you always have to have the revision surgery after one year?
A: Revision surgery can be done after 6 months, but most surgeons recommend waiting a year to see the final results before going for a revision surgery.

Q: Do you have to get the silicone replaced after every few years?
A: No. As long as your body doesn’t reject the silicone and you don’t get an infection, the implant does not need to be replaced.

Q: When are you allowed to resume sports activities after surgery?
A: One month after surgery, you can start low-impact exercises like walking etc. After two months, you can slowly begin to introduce higher intensity workouts. The key point is to avoid any activities during that time that could cause you to accidentally injure yourself, or add pressure to the nose.

Q: What if you have a cold and runny nose during recovery, could this be an issue?
A: Normally if you get a cold or flu before surgery, the surgery will get cancelled. After surgery, you should be careful so as to not get sick, because you should avoid any pressure on the nose. However, in case you do get a cold, try to avoid sneezing, and do not blow your nose! You can wipe whatever comes out naturally, without adding any pressure to the nose.

Q: How to know if the nose suits the patient?
A: The surgeon will see you for a consultation and recommend which procedures you need for your specific case, so the surgery will be customized for your nose.

Q: How long does the surgery usually take?
A: The surgery takes 2-3 hours, depending on which procedure you do. (minus the anesthesia time).

Q: How long should I plan on staying in Korea for recovery?
A: The stitches are removed seven days after surgery, so in addition to the seven days, add the consultation and surgery day. For example, if you arrive on Sunday evening, then have the consultation on Monday and surgery on Tuesday, then Wednesday would be considered “Day 1” after surgery. On “Day 7”, the stitches are removed.

Q: How long will it hurt after the anesthesia wears off?
A: You will be given painkillers to use for a few days, so you will not really feel much pain. People usually complain about discomfort, rather than pain, but within a week, you should be alright.

Q: They say, it takes one year to see the rhinoplasty results, so what does your nose look like during that time?
A: The surgery results can be seen right away, but your nose will be very swollen. As the swelling decreases, the cartilage heals, so your final results will slowly unveil as you heal. Please see below example.

Q: When is it alright to pinch the nose again?
A: For the first 6 months after surgery, try to avoid voluntarily moving the silicone implant around as it is still in the healing phase. 

Q: How long do you have to breathe from your mouth after the surgery? Is it harder to breathe after every surgery or is that a sign that the surgery has been botched? 
A: The surgeon will insert cotton swabs inside your nose, wich remain for 2-3 days. After those are removed, you should be able to breathe with your nose.

Q: What are the things to be avoided during recovery period?
A: Do not smoke or drink alcohol for a week minimum before surgery. Avoid aspirin or any type of blood thinner for 7-10 before surgery. For more surgery pre-cautions, please check this post. 

Q: What should I eat for faster recovery and what foods should I avoid?
A: Here is a detailed post about what to eat for faster surgery recovery.

Q: What about nose piercing? Will it be affected by the surgery? 
A: For regular nose piercing, you will have to remove the piecing for the duration of the surgery, and will not be able to put it back on for at least 1-3 weeks after the surgery.

Q: When can you wash the face after surgery? 
A: Cast is worn for 7 days after surgery so until it is removed, you can use a wet wipe to clean your face. After the stitches are removed, then the surgery area can be washed lightly. 

Q: How long does it take for the swelling to reduce? 
A: Major swelling lasts from 2 to 3 weeks and Minor swelling lasts from 3 to 6 months.

Q: Is the recovery for revision rhinoplasty faster? 
A: Revision surgeries usually take longer for the recovery, since it has been operated on before. 

Q: Does it affect your sense of smell? 
A: After rhinoplasty, your nose will feel stuffy for a while, but once that clears, your sense of smell will return to normal as you heal.

For an in-depth rhinoplasty recovery timeline, click here!

ID Hospital ethnic rhinoplasty: best rhinoplasty in Korea for any ethnic case!

https://eng.idhospital.com/nose-job/nose-reduction-rhinoplasty/

The size and design that suits your facial balance the most
id Nose Reduction Ethnic Rhinoplasty

ID Asian rhinoplasty: best rhinoplasty in Korea

The core of ID’s Asian Rhinoplasty is designing the nose according to your facial shape. We insert a nasal implant and use ear cartilage or septal cartilage to define the tip of the nose and raise it to fit the overall face

Fashion blogger Kerina Wang and her real selfie after plastic surgery in ID Hospital

Before surgery

My name is Kerina Wang and I came to Korea from Canada.  I did not like her wide and saggy nose. I also wanted to make my eyes bigger and to add volume on flat and sunken areas on  my face.
ID Hospital has arranged everything: surgery and consultation schedule, recovery treatments, hotel room and cab ride. There was also a free shuttle bus from the hotel to the hospital, so it was very convenient.

Consultation

Dr. Bang Chi Young performed my surgeries. During the consultation he measured my eyes and examined my nose. I wanted ptosis correction to lift my eyes up, but in the end we decided not to go with it because of my eyes shape and do canthoplasty instead. As for nose shape, I wanted sharp tip, alar reduction and higher bridge. Dr. Bang suggested fat graft on my forehead to achieve better facial balance and fat graft under eyes to fill sunken area.

I got all pre-op instructions from the consultant. On the next day I took pre-surgery pictures, changed the clothes, doctor went over the surgery plan one more time and drew the design. I emphasized I wanted everything to look natural and I’m really happy that Dr. Bang understood my concerns. In the end I decided to get rhinoplasty, lateral canthoplasty, latheral hotz and fat graft.

1 week after

During the first week my nose was completely blocked, but besides that I felt really fine. It looked terrible but I didn’t feel a single pain. I was allowed to eat everything as my surgeries didn’t require any special diet. Sleeping was a little difficult too, so I had to adjust to mouth breathing. When I got the cast and stitches removed on the 7th day after the surgery my nose looked bulbous because of the swelling, but I felt amazing and happy.

2 months after

Swelling has gone significantly during next 2 months. My face looks 3 dimensional especially with the forehead fat graft and higher bridge and tip. I want to thank ID Hospital for doing such an amazing job because I love it and I can’t want to see my final result after the swelling goes down.

Plastic surgery recovery: post op home care instructions

Post op home care during plastic surgery recovery is as important as surgery itself. Patient should take recovery period seriously to maximize surgery result and avoid inflammation, infections and other side effects.

1. Plastic surgery recovery tips for eyes

Using the mirror check the surgical area. Prepare saline solution and a cotton swab. Soak the cotton swab in the solution. Disinfect the area with the soaked swab. Be as soft as possible when touching the eye with swabs! Apply a small amount of ointment from inside to outside.

⚠️Caution: do not rub your eyes

2. Plastic surgery recovery tips for nose

Prepare saline solution and a cotton swab. Soak the cotton swab in the solution. Disinfect the area with the soaked swab. Apply a small amount of ointment (use not more than a half of the cotton swab).

⚠️Caution: never try to remove nose cast by yourself

3. Face cleansing

You can use wet tissue to clean your face. Use tissue gently and don’t push too much.

4. Gargling

What you need: mouth wash

Prepare mouthwash and get ready to clean your mouth. Fill mouth with adequate amount of mouthwash. Press lips with both hands not to let any liquid escape from the mouth. Hitting all corners of the mouth gargle for at least 30 seconds once every 2 hours.

⚠️Caution: don’t use Listerine instead of a disinfecting mouthwash. Use mouthwash recommended by clinic’s staff.

5. Brushing teeth 

Avoid touching areas from procedure and only brush the teeth. Carefully follow both brushing and gargling procedures.

6. Wafers cleaning

Keep the wafers on the palm of your hand.

⚠️Caution: never disinfect wafers with boiling water. It may lead to changing wafer’s shape

Other advises:

- Hot / ice packs
Use ice packs for the first 4 days after the surgery, then switch to hot packs. If you had fat graft or face lifting, don’t use any of them.

- Pain killers
It’s allowed to take prescribed pain killers such as Tylenol. Check the dosage with your surgeon.

- Swelling
The major swelling takes up to 1 or 2 months. Light stroll and walking will help you to reduce it.

- Washing hair
If you have stitches in your scalp don’t wash your hair by yourself. It may cause swelling and inflammation.

You can contact ID Hospital staff anytime to get more information about plastic surgery recovery.

We will be happy to assist you online or in person!

An American cosplayer Kupo Vannie got her rhinoplasty and V line in ID Hospital

Before surgery

I am a cosplayer from the US. I’ve been thinking of having rhinoplasty and facial contouring surgery for 5-6 years before deciding to go to Korea. After extensive research I decided that ID Hospital is the place to be because they have specialized surgeons.

I wanted to change my bulbous tip to make it more thin and to make my wide nostrils more defined. I also wanted a higher nose bridge as it was very flat. As for facial contouring I wanted V line surgery for a more defined chin and slimmer jaw line.

Consultation day

I had consultation with dr Lim for V line and dr Song for rhinoplasty. I showed my desirable results on the pictures that I brought. The consultation was very detailed, and my surgeons reconfirmed the shape of the nose and jaw that I wanted.

After surgery

I did research before the surgery so I knew that the first days would be very tough. However when I got a rhinoplasty cast removed the first thing I noticed was that my nose bridge got a lot higher and even though it was very swollen I could see a huge difference. I checked in with both of my surgeons, saw my X rays and I loved my results. The recovery was more uncomfortable than painful, but it all was worth it.