5 Steps to Minimise Bruising after a Facelift

Step 1: Before Your Surgery

It is important to avoid foods that increase your risk of bleeding. And I don’t mean medications such as aspirin and warfarin. Certain food varieties and additives thin your blood and increase bleeding after surgery

Lettuce, berries, walnuts, green tea, grape juice, dark chocolate, garlic, fish all have blood thinning properties and avoiding this food in the week leading up to any major surgical procedure reduces your bleeding risk and post operative bruising.

Stopping of medications and over the counter medications

Stopping aspirin at least 7 days before surgery is vital to reverse its anti-platelet properties. Over the counter medications like fish oil and St Johns wort also thin the blood and must be stopped.

If you require blood thinning for cardiac reasons then your cardiologist needs to be informed.

Step 2: Leading Up To Surgery

Try and stay as calm as possible, whether you meditate or pray its imperative you get in the right head space, as this will ease your blood pressure during and importantly after surgery.

Having all the right information helps and Dr Zoumaras and Artiste will ensure that no stone is unturned to give you the information you require.

Step 3: Immediate Post Operative Period

Your blood pressure will be controlled in the early stages of recovery to keep oozing to a minimum. This tailored with good pain relief allows you to rouse from surgery with minimum of discomfort and anxiety. Ice packs will be applied liberally to the face to help bruising.

The insertion of drains mop up any blood from the surgical site and they remain for a few days.

Step 4: At Home

You will be asked to refrain from extensive talking, chewing gum and hot or spicy food. The constant movement of the facial muscles during talking and chewing can trigger bleeding and make bruising worse, so you will have to be anti-social for a few days. Hot and spicy foods cause vasodilatation (enlargement of blood vessels) and this leads to increase bleeding. These measures will minimise bruising after a facelift.

Step 5: Make Up and Bruising Aids

Topical gels can be used to minimise bruising, products such as Hirudoid cream or gel have anti-inflammatory properties that minimise bruising in a facelift. The use of parsley has been advocated to reduce bruising. Simply crush some parsley leaves and rub onto the affected area.

Lastly facial make up and concealer’s can be used to hide bruising as early as 3 days after a facelift.

Summary:

Avoid dark chocolate, grape fruit juice, garlic and fish

Stay calm, pray or meditate on the lead up to surgery

Use ice packs immediately after surgery to minimise bruising and stop bleeding

Avoid hot and spicy foods at home

Use Hirudoid cream or crushed parsley for bruising daily

It would be expected that you should be able to return to work and social activities after 10-14 days. For more information see Art of a Facelift  and Artiste Face Menu

Disclaimer: At Artiste Plastic Surgery, our Plastic Surgeons led by Dr Jack Zoumaras have been trained to the highest possible degree. All surgery has risks and it is always advised to get a second opinion. Risks are very real and we cannot guarantee any result. Results are illustrated as a guide only. All risks are managed and any need for revision surgery or complications (1-5%) can be managed by our specialist plastic surgeons.

Any statements on how you will feel is based on Level V Evidence:

Level V:  How you will feel after plastic surgery varies between individuals, depending on psychological and physical factors. Our internal research is based on how patients in our practice feel after surgery.

The blogs are not a substitute for a medical consultation and do not form as part of the doctor to patient relationship.