One of the biggest fears that patients have when contemplating nasal surgery is the thought of having their nose packed after surgery. Here is the good news: you don’t need nasal packing.
Some surgeons use long strips of gauze placed on both sides of the nose to prevent blood clots or to stabilize the septum (middle of the nose) in place after an operation. This causes complete obstruction of the patient’s breathing and is very uncomfortable to have removed. Imagine someone pulling 3 feet of gauze out of your sore nose a few days after your surgery!
I use a very delicate suture technique known as mattressing to remove the need for nasal packing after rhinoplasty or septoplasty. A small, dissolvable stitch is used to bring the septum into the midline and secure it so that blood clots will not form. The stitches dissolve in about a week and cause no discomfort.
Septal mattressing is another chapter in my quest to make surgical procedures as minimally invasive and minimally painful as possible.
For more information on rhinoplasty, septoplasty or nasal surgery check out our website. To request a consultation, call (804) 775-4559 or submitt your information via the form below.
