Post-operative care

Surgical results are not decided in the operating theatre alone. They depend just as much on the days and weeks that follow. Post-operative care at the practice is therefore organised in advance, and it involves the whole team: nurses, physiotherapists, the anaesthetist and the surgeon.

This page describes what applies to every procedure. The suites specific to each operation — how long swelling lasts, when activities resume, how long before a flight — are set out on the page for that procedure.

Who looks after the patient after surgery?

Care is delivered by a full team, and every stage has a named point of contact: nurses at the practice and the clinic for dressings, a physiotherapist for lymphatic drainage at home, the anaesthetist for pain relief, and the surgeon himself at two closely spaced review consultations. No question goes unanswered during recovery.

How is nursing care organised?

Nurses at both the practice and the clinic handle dressing changes and all local wound care. These appointments are booked before surgery: you leave the clinic already knowing your care calendar, your times and your points of contact.

Is lymphatic drainage carried out at home?

Yes. From the second day after surgery, a physiotherapist specialising in manual lymphatic drainage attends the patient at home. This spares a journey during the least comfortable phase of recovery.

Manual lymphatic drainage is gentle, painless work that supports lymphatic circulation in the operated area. It aims to reduce both the intensity and the duration of post-operative swelling, one of the main sources of discomfort and worry in the early weeks.

What is hyperbaric oxygen therapy for after aesthetic surgery?

It increases oxygen delivery to tissues under repair. The practice is equipped with a hyperbaric oxygen chamber and offers it alongside standard care, with the aim of limiting swelling and supporting healing.

Whether it is indicated is assessed case by case by the surgeon, according to the procedure performed and to how each patient progresses. It replaces none of the care described on this page.

When does the surgeon see patients again?

Two review consultations are scheduled:

• within seven days of surgery, for a first assessment of healing;
• between day ten and day fourteen, before sutures are removed.

These two appointments allow healing to be checked, instructions to be adjusted and questions to be answered at a point where the still transitional appearance of the result can be unsettling.

When are the sutures removed?

Sutures generally come out between the tenth and the fourteenth day, at the second review consultation. The exact interval depends on the procedure and on the area operated on.

Is pain properly controlled after surgery?

The anaesthetist does not hand the patient over at the door of the operating theatre. They remain involved in post-operative care and check that the pain relief prescribed stays matched to actual need, adjusting it during the early days where required.

How long does swelling last after facial surgery?

Swelling peaks between the second and the fourth day, then subsides gradually over two to three weeks. It is precisely to reduce its intensity and its duration that manual lymphatic drainage begins at home on the second day.

The follow-up calendar, step by step

• On the day of discharge — clinic nurses: first care, discharge instructions, calendar handed over in person.
• From the second day — physiotherapist: manual lymphatic drainage at home.
• Day one to day seven — nurses at the practice and the clinic: dressing changes and local wound care.
• The early days — anaesthetist: adjustment of pain relief.
• Before day seven — the surgeon: first review consultation.
• Between day ten and day fourteen — the surgeon: second consultation, then removal of sutures.
• Where indicated — hyperbaric oxygen sessions at the practice.

This calendar is indicative: it is adapted to each procedure and to each patient. You are given it in writing before surgery, together with the numbers to use if in any doubt. If you are travelling from abroad it also determines the length of your stay: see Coming from abroad.