Some swelling and light bruising can occur and begins to fade within a week's time. A splint is usually worn during the first week. Any pain or discomfort can be controlled with prescription pain medication. If nasal packing is used, it is typically removed within the first two days after surgery. Though swelling is significantly reduced after the first week, it can take as much as a year for all of the swelling to disappear.

After rhinoplasty, some swelling and bruising can occur. Patients should plan to stay in bed for the first day but should feel much better after a day or two.

Patients can expect a recovery of about seven days after rhinoplasty. Bruising and swelling are common and may occur around the eyes. The majority of swelling will begin to fade in about two weeks. After about one week, the dressings, splints and stitches will be removed.

Possibly a slight discomfort in the beginning, but not much more than that. Though this can vary from one patient to another, recovery is much faster and much less painful than previous procedures. Most people are pleasantly surprised at how short and painless the recovery is.

The incision for the sentinel lymph node biopsy will generally not be more than 1= inches long. This will be closed with absorbable sutures and steri strips and after 24 hours from surgery, can be showered. Soaking in a tub should be avoided. For all wounds, (sentinel node and wide-local excision both) some minimal redness is normal, but if the area gets progressively redder or begins to drain, this is a sign of infection and you should notify your doctor.

The goal of recovery and rehabilitation is to maintain as much motion in the shoulder as possible. This will require daily exercise and patient responsibility. Physical therapy is very important.

Recovery from this outpatient procedure is generally quick if the rotator cuff is not severely involved. Return to work can be in days and return to rigorous activities can be within weeks. The calcification can recur, but generally this is not common.