During Surgery

Nose jobs are usually performed under general anaesthetic although the procedure can be done under local anaesthetic or sedation. The operation takes one to two hours and can be carried out at an outpatient’s clinic or hospital. You may be required to stay overnight but in most cases you will be able to go home after a few hours.

The surgeon begins by making an incision either inside the nose or across the skin that separates the nostrils, known as the columella to expose the underlying cartilage and bone. In some cases the nose is broken and reset alternatively the surgeon ‘shaves’ off or removes cartilage and bone to create the desired shape.

The surgeon then stitches the skin back into place and applies a splint to help the nose retain its new shape. If your nose is not being made smaller you may only need tape rather than stitches. If stitches are used they will usually be dissolvable and will not require removal. If the surgeon does make a cut across the skin separating the nostrils then you will usually have stitches that will need to be removed around a week after surgery.

How your surgery is performed will depend on the type of nose job surgery you are having.