Facial Reconstruction -Procedures, Side effects, Recovery time, Costs and alternatives

Facial Reconstructive surgery is a treatment that improves your face after an illness or a traumatic accident. For many reasons patients need reconstructive surgery. Patients who suffer from Infection, disease, accident, trauma, cancer and other conditions come out for this surgery. Aesthetic facial surgery includes rhinoplasty, ear surgery, facelifts, browlift, chin and cheek augmentation, Autologous bone grafting, and facial liposuction. Of late, latest non-invasive procedures such as botox injection, dermal fillers, ultherapy are ruling the facial reconstructive field.

Pediatric surgery includes correction of various ear deformities including Cryptotia (hidden ear), drooping ears, and pointed ear defects. Reconstructive facial surgery involves the management of post-surgical, post- traumatic and congenital facial malformations. Complex reconstructive procedures are as cleft palate, scar revisions, vascular malformations, birthmarks, cleft lip, postsurgical nasal obstruction, microtia, facial paralysis rehabilitation, septal perforation and nasal valve collapse regularly performed.

The various options for the facial reconstruction are as follows:

• Facial trauma reconstruction: Persons who suffer from facial fractures or facial trauma such as illness, injury or malformation can adapt facial trauma reconstruction surgery. Surgeons who specially trained in reconstructing facial features can restore both appearance, and functions such as talking, eating, smiling, and blinking.
• Facial reconstructive surgery is usually done by the Plastic surgeon who may use tissues from your body with a procedure of microvascular free tissue transfer or “free flap” to rebuild the facial features. During the procedure, the surgeon takes skin, muscle or bone from a part of the body for the purpose of reconstructing new facial features.Implants and prosthesis are used to restore natural features and contours when the Autologous procedure is not possible.
• Rhinoplasty: It is otherwise called “nose job”. This surgery changes the shape of the nose by modifying the cartilage or bone. After administering general anesthesia to the patient, the surgeon will make cuts inside or between the nostrils. The bone or cartilage will be separated from the skin and he will start to reshape it. If your nose needs additional cartilage extras inside the nose, ear or if it needs more bone grafting will be performed. This surgical procedure approximately takes 1-2 hours depends on the complexity.
• Ultherapy: It is an FDA cleared non-invasive procedure that helps in lifting and tightening the chin, brow and neck. It also improves the wrinkles and lines of the chest. In this therapy, time tested ultrasound energy is used to lift and tighten the skin naturally. You can attain a fresh look from brow to chest with the help of Ultherapy. During the treatment, the doctor will use a handheld device to deliver ultrasound energy into the skin at precise depths to raise the body’s collagen production. This entire treatment will take up to 1.30 hours depends on the area of the procedure say face, neck, or chest.

The patient eligibility criteria are as follows:

• Facial reconstructive surgery: Patients with large skin cancers, recurrent skin cancers or cancers on the face, trauma, injury, birth deformities are ideal for this surgery
• Rhinoplasty: People who have droopy, broken, wide, low bridge, high bridge nose, deviated septum, nostril collapse can opt for the treatment.
• Ultherapy: People who have lowered eyebrow, loose skin under the neck, and sagging skin on eye lids, mild to moderate laxity are ideal candidates for Ultherapy.

The guidelines for non-eligibility are as follows:

• Rhinoplasty: Children less than 15 years old and still have nasal bone development are not eligible as well as people who suffer from hemophilia or other serious medical issues are not advised to go for rhinoplasty.Ultherapy should not be recommended to the patients with open lesions or wound in the treatment area, possessing metal implants or other active implants in the treatment site, severe acne in the treatment site. Ultherapy is not advisable for pregnant women, children, autoimmune disease, diabetic, epilepsy, herpes patients.

Some of the possible side effects of the treatment are as follows:

• Facial Trauma Reconstruction: Infection, nerve damage, scarring, hematoma, deep vein thrombosis, organ damage, anesthesia complications, blood loss and seroma are common side effects.
• Nausea, vomiting, dizziness due to anesthesia, bleeding, infection, scars, difficulty in breathing and a numb nose are common side effects of rhinoplasty. In the first couple of days after the surgery, the patient may experience profuse bleeding, headache, inflammation and bruising.
• Ultherapy: Slight swelling, tingling sensation or tenderness and slight redness, flushing which may last up to hardly one hour.

The post treatment guidelines for the various treatment options are as follows:

• Facial Trauma Reconstruction:
• You may feel numbness in the skin for a week after the surgery. This is normal which will be subsided within a week’s time.
• Do not smoke during the recovery that may delay your healing
• Do not take alcohol until your doctor tells you
• Take pain medications as prescribed by the physician
• Generally, you will be recommended for cold compressors to reduce bruising and swelling
• You will be advised to change dressings or bandages as per a schedule
• Avoid sports for at least 2 months
• Avoid lifting and bending until your surgeon tells you can
• Rhinoplasty: You have to avoid the following activities for a few weeks after rhinoplasty. Blowing the nose, excessive chewing, swimming, strenuous physical activity, vigorous tooth brushing, facial expressions with lots of movements, and sun exposure. Too much of sun exposure will change the skin around your nose.
• Ultherapy: After the treatment, your skin may be more irritable. Use post-laser treatment cream such as hydration cream. Apply sunscreen lotion immediately after the treatment and continue. Do not rub the skin after the treatment.

The recovery time for the patient varies from patient to patient based on his or her health condition. Facial Trauma Reconstruction:

Recovery from facial reconstructive surgery varies from every person and it totally depends on the level of underlying damage, the patient’s general health and other factors including careful attention to postoperative instructions.

Rhinoplasty surgery will take some weeks to recover; however, some effects may linger for months.There is no downtime for Ultherapy; you can start your normal activities after the procedure. However slight reddishness may be prominent for some hours.

Facial reconstructive surgery: The cost of the surgery varies for every part of the face. It starts from 1,00,000/- as a minimum cost.

Though Rhinoplasty surgery cost depends on the complexity, it will approximately cost from 40,000 to 2,00,000/- Ultherapy cost depends on various factors like the type of skin, the skin depth, the skin volume that is to be treated. Approximately the treatment starts at 1,00,000/-

The results of the surgery can be permanent, unless until the patient follows up the post-operative guidelines carefully. The result of the rhinoplasty surgery is permanent if it is performed correctly by an eminent surgeon. Ultherapy results may not be permanent as the age goes collagen production decreases. It is necessary to optimize the result at least once a year to increase collagen production.

There is no alternative treatment for rhinoplasty. If you do not want to undergo an invasive procedure, then dermal fillers will be a good alternative. Ultherapy has some alternatives include Thermage, brow lift, neck lift, and facelift. Except Thermage other procedures are invasive. ThermiRF is an alternative to Ultherapy.