The nasal dressing

Written by Escobar MD     

If you are going to get a rhinoplasty in Bogotá or in Madrid, you are perhaps thinking about the famous cast and the noticeable dressing...

This point is necessary (very necessary, I would say), but it has particularities, in my experience.

I believe that the use of a cast in a rhinoplasty is something completely anachronistic, out of date and useless.

The ideal thing is to use a metallic splint that adapts easily to the shape of the nose, that does not become loose as the nose's swelling goes down, and that is in place for at least 10 days.

This splint is fixed and covered with Micropore, which is a type of paper bandage that will allow the splint to be held in a stable position. It will be better if it is flesh toned, because it will be more aesthetic.

The dressing helps the skin adapt to the new shape of the nose, it will control the swelling on the first 10 days, and it will protect the nose from getting hit. It is ideal to change the dressing four or five days after the surgery, and it should be removed finally after ten days. If there is still some swelling, the patient should wear it for two or three more days. It makes no sense to have it on for more than 2 weeks, and in most cases the skin begins to react.

To summarize, the dressing is as important to me as the surgery. On the follow-up visits the surgeon not only removes it and puts it back on... ...he has the opportunity to speed up the healing process by massaging the nose, doing pressure on an area that is more swollen, etc. The checkup has that objective, in addition to changing the dressing.