The American Society of Plastic Surgeons reports that almost 220,000 people turn to Rhinoplasty in Orlando FL, also referred to as a nose job, every year. At The Institute of Aesthetic Surgery in Celebration, FL, we are excited to offer this procedure to help our clients improve the appearance and functionality of their noses. Today, we’re taking a closer look at this procedure, including how long it takes to perform.
How Long Does Rhinoplasty Orlando FL Take?
How long your Rhinoplasty Orlando FL procedure will take depends on several factors, including the scope of your procedure and the technique used to achieve your goals. You can generally expect your procedure to take around 90 minutes to complete if you get a closed-nose job. On the other hand, if you get an open-nose job, your procedure may take closer to two or three hours to complete.
Am I a Good Candidate for This Procedure?
There is a good chance you will be considered a good candidate for this procedure if you are concerned about the appearance or function of your nose. With that being said, you must attend an initial evaluation with an aesthetic surgeon to verify your candidacy. During this evaluation, your health and lifestyle will be reviewed thoroughly to ensure this procedure is safe for you.
Certain chronic medical conditions, like uncontrolled diabetes or cancer, will preclude you from qualifying for surgery. You also will need to hold off on this procedure if you are pregnant or breastfeeding. Furthermore, you must be able to follow all preparation and recovery guidelines to qualify.
What Preparation Instructions Will I Need to Follow?
During your initial Rhinoplasty Orlando FL consultation, we will provide you with a complete list of preparation instructions. One of the most important preparation instructions you will need to adhere to is to refrain from nicotine consumption. This is because consuming nicotine can increase your blood pressure measurably. For your safety, it is important that your blood pressure is normal at the time of surgery.
Note, it is vital that you let us know during your initial consultation if there are any preparation instructions that you don’t think you can follow. Your safety is our top priority. Also, make sure you talk to your doctor about any medications you need to stop taking to prepare for surgery to ensure it will be safe.
What Recovery Guidelines Will I Need to Follow?
Try to Avoid Wearing Your Glasses
For an optimal recovery experience, do your best to not wear your glasses before your nose has finished healing. It is okay to wear your glasses during the first stage of your recovery while your nose is protected by bandaging and a splint. Once the protective splint is removed, you should try to wait until your nose has healed to wear glasses.
If you need to wear reading glasses, plan on hobbies that don’t require you to wear your glasses. If you need to wear glasses, talk to your eye doctor about getting lighter frames or frames that were designed specifically for Rhinoplasty Orlando FL recovery.
Don’t Blow Your Nose
It is also extremely important that you do not blow your nose during the early stages of your recovery process. If you feel like your sinuses are itchy, you can do your best to ignore the sensation until it passes. Alternatively, you can use a saline nasal spray to relieve the sensation of itchiness.
If you don’t want to purchase a saline nasal spray from your local pharmacy or grocery store, you can make your own saline nasal spray at home that is just as effective. To do this, you’ll want to mix a teaspoon of baking soda and three teaspoons of salt that is free from iodide in a clean container. Then, you’ll want to add a teaspoon of the dry ingredients with one cup of boiled and cooled water or tepid distilled water.
How Long Will My Recovery Take?
For the most part, Rhinoplasty Orlando FL recovery is complete after six to eight weeks. However, it can take between nine and 13 months to recover fully. As a general rule of thumb, it will take a bit longer to achieve a complete recovery if the cartilage is harvested from your rib, upper nose, or ear to graft onto your nose. Also, you can generally expect to recover completely from surgery if you get a closed-nose job. Here are some tips for recovering faster.
Eat Plenty of Protein
One of the most effective steps you can take to recover from your nose job faster is to make sure you eat and drink plenty of protein. This will help you recover faster because protein is made up of amino acids. Your body breaks down the protein you consume into the amino acids that make it up. Then, it uses certain types of amino acids to construct and fuel a special type of protein, collagen.
Great sources of protein include legumes, seafood, and poultry. Dairy products and most nuts and nut butter are also very high in protein. If you find that you don’t have much of an appetite, know that it’s normal. If you don’t feel like eating, try to drink something high in protein, like a smoothie made with Greek or Icelandic yogurt, spinach, kale, and tropical fruits. Spinach, kale, and other dark green veggies are other great protein sources.
Eat Plenty of Vitamin C
In order to produce extra collagen, your body doesn’t just need a few key amino acids. It also needs other ingredients, like vitamin C and water. Fortunately, foods that are high in vitamin C, like broccoli, kale, spinach, and carrots, also tend to be high in water. Citrus fruits are another excellent source of vitamin C, water, and soluble fiber. Increasing your soluble fiber may be recommended depending on whether you take certain analgesics while you recover.
Drink More Water
You can also increase the rate at which you recover by drinking more water and other hydrating fluids, like black coffee and unsweetened tea. Even though you can get a lot of water from the fruits, vegetables, and broth-based soups in your diet, it is still important to drink regularly throughout the day. Even if you don’t feel thirsty, you need to drink more hydrating fluids if your water is not pale or clear.
Walk Often
Getting regular cardiovascular exercise is also very important for your recovery process. As a good general rule of thumb, you should aim to get at least 30 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise five days per week. Just remember that rest is another crucial part of surgery recovery. You don’t need to worry about exercising within the first 24 hours following your procedure. After that, build up your exercise routine slowly and rest whenever you feel like you need to.
It’s okay if you can only finish five or 10 minutes of gentle exercise at one time the day after surgery. If you feel up to it, try to get some more gentle exercise once you feel well-rested. If you tire yourself out during your first exercise session, that’s okay. Exercise again the next day, and you’ll probably find that you can go farther or longer, especially if you sleep well.
Sleep On Your Back
Your recovery process will also go more smoothly if you sleep on your back. Remember, you will wear a protective splint around your healing nose during the early stages of your recovery. However, you can slow your healing process if you sleep on your stomach or side while your incisions are healing.
It is also important that you get at least 7.5 hours of sleep per night during your recovery. That said, ideally, you should aim to get nine hours of consecutive sleep nightly. Getting as much consecutive sleep as you can every night is important because most of your body’s recovery occurs during the REM stage of sleep at the end of the sleep cycle. If you wake up and fall back asleep, you’ll start over at the beginning of the sleep cycle.
The Bottom Line
The bottom line is that a nose job rarely takes more than three hours to complete. In some cases, it can take under two hours. The length of your procedure depends on several factors, including the severity of your concerns, the number of improvements you are looking to make, and the technique used to perform the procedure. If you are concerned about your nose, contact us today at The Institute of Aesthetic Surgery in Celebration, FL to schedule a consultation.
