Now that you have arrived home, either the day of surgery or the morning after if you have stayed overnite, it is time to relax and let the natural healing process take its course. However, there are a variety of things you can do and to be aware of to make your early recovery better.
Medications
Make sure that you take your antibiotics at the prescribed intervals and your pain medications as needed. When it comes to pain medications, remember that there is no reward for seeing how tough you are. If you have pain, take your medications! It is not infrequent that the strength of pain medications prescribed may be inadequate or your stomach may not tolerate them. In this case, contact your doctor immediately and get a prescription for a different type of pain
medication. Occasionally, patients will develop a reaction to either the antibiotic or pain medication. This will be manifest as itching and possibly hives. More times than not, it will be to the antibiotic and this will need to be immediately stopped and changed. Contacting your doctor in this event is paramount. While some patients may develop nausea, which is also a reaction to medications, this is not a true allergy but a sensitivity to one of the medications ingredients. (often the preservative) In this case, the medication (usually the pain pills) will have to be changed.
In facial surgery, usually the eyes, there may be open incisions. On these antibiotic ointments are to be placed. If it is around the eyes, the antibiotic ointment should be specifically ophthalmic, so that if it gets in the eyes it will not cause irritation. Other incisions, if exposed, should be liebrally covered with an antibiotic ointment.
Dressings
Whether it is facial or body surgery, you will likely have dressings (bandages) placed at the time of surgery. This could be circumferential facial wraps for face or neck surgery or bras or compression garments for body surgery. These are to be left in place until at least 24 hours after surgery and your doctor will give you specific instructions about these dressings. In my practice, I almost always remove all dressings, face or body, the next day so the patient can shower. I usually do this myself in the office but some dressings may be able to be removed at home by the patient.
Swelling
If you have had facial surgery, it is important to keep your head elevated. Whether it be in a reclining chair or in bed with several pillows, you can have some control over how much swelling will occur. Laying down flat will cause a tremendous amount of swelling by the next day. Ice (or frozen vegetables) applied to the face or eyes can also lessen how much swelling will occur. After 24 hours, the application of cold will not make a big difference but for the first iht after surgery it will. In body surgery, there is not much youo can do about swelling. That is why support or compression garments are put on after body surgery. These are to be left on after surgery for at least the first night…..unless they become too tight. If you are having trouble breathing from a bra, chest, or abdominal wrap or your hands (arm wraps) or feet (leg wraps) go numb or vert tight from swelling, the garments should be loosened or taken off. Contact your doctor immediately and more specific instructions will be given.
One important concept to grasp about swelling…..it does not peak for 48 hours after surgery. This is unfamiliar, and often disturbing, to patients. Patients understandably think that areas of surgery start to get better beginning the day after. But this is not so, the onset of swelling and bruising will continue for several days. By the third day swelling will stabilize and start to go down thereafter.
Nutrition
Eat or drink whatever you feel comfortable or want to do. Liquids, however, are by far the most important. Staying adequately hydrated will make you feel better, allow your medications to work more efficiently, and will help clear toxins faster from your system.
Dr Barry Eppley
Indianapolis, Indiana