Q. I am 52 and would like to have a Face/neck lift, Rhino/Septoplasty, Lateral eye hood lift, and Co2/erbium around my eyes and mouth. I will have to have rib cartilage removed for my Rhino/Septo. I am wondering if this is too much at once and what the average healing time is along with pain. I know everyone is different, I would just like to know what I am in for. Honestly from the experts.
A. In a perfect world, a wish list of procedures to recover at one time with no complications is desirous but it does not exist. Age is not the determining factor, health and safety are.
Face and Neck Lift with brow elevation and rhinoplasty are definitely my personal limit of procedures. Each additional procedure adds surgical time, anesthesia complexity, swelling, risk of complications and recovery time.
SeptoRhinoplasty with a rib graft and ablative CO2 laser add another level of complexity and particularly risks of complications. I would stage these procedures.
Please remember there is a fatigue factor on your surgeon and the Operating Room staff as well.
Staging the procedures allow your surgeon to touch-up or enhance prior concerns as well for an overall better result.
As you have noted, each patient is unique and their pain and healing times will be different too. In general, with a reasonable set of procedures, expect to return to “activities of daily living” such as walking, driving, care-giving, etc in 3 weeks and exertional activities in 6-12 weeks. Consider the added stress on YOUR care-givers.
If your expectations are to be back socially in 12 weeks, you may stage your procedures 3 to 4 weeks from each other and still recover in the desired 12 week time. Otherwise, consider 2 recovery periods.
Discuss these ideas with your well experienced, Board Certified Plastic Surgeon or Facial ENT Surgeon and your primary care physician.
I hope this was helpful! All the best!
Honesty about multiple facial procedures done at once.
Q. I am 52 and would like to have a Face/neck lift, Rhino/Septoplasty, Lateral eye hood lift, and Co2/erbium around my eyes and mouth. I will have to have rib cartilage removed for my Rhino/Septo. I am wondering if this is too much at once and what the average healing time is along with pain. I know everyone is different, I would just like to know what I am in for. Honestly from the experts.
A. In a perfect world, a wish list of procedures to recover at one time with no complications is desirous but it does not exist. Age is not the determining factor, health and safety are.
Face and Neck Lift with brow elevation and rhinoplasty are definitely my personal limit of procedures. Each additional procedure adds surgical time, anesthesia complexity, swelling, risk of complications and recovery time.
SeptoRhinoplasty with a rib graft and ablative CO2 laser add another level of complexity and particularly risks of complications. I would stage these procedures.
Please remember there is a fatigue factor on your surgeon and the Operating Room staff as well.
Staging the procedures allow your surgeon to touch-up or enhance prior concerns as well for an overall better result.
As you have noted, each patient is unique and their pain and healing times will be different too. In general, with a reasonable set of procedures, expect to return to “activities of daily living” such as walking, driving, care-giving, etc in 3 weeks and exertional activities in 6-12 weeks. Consider the added stress on YOUR care-givers.
If your expectations are to be back socially in 12 weeks, you may stage your procedures 3 to 4 weeks from each other and still recover in the desired 12 week time. Otherwise, consider 2 recovery periods.
Discuss these ideas with your well experienced, Board Certified Plastic Surgeon or Facial ENT Surgeon and your primary care physician.
I hope this was helpful! All the best!
