Aesthetic Surgery

It is as safe as the surgeon, the hospital and the follow-up plan — not as safe as the country. A board-certified surgeon operating in a JCI-accredited hospital with intensive care on site, with a written plan for complications, is a different proposition from a discounted package at a day clinic. Judge the specifics, not the destination.

Sometimes, and it is often sensible — one anaesthetic, one recovery. But total operating time is the main driver of serious complications such as blood clots, so surgeons cap it, usually around six hours. Whether your particular combination fits under that cap is a decision for the operating surgeon after seeing your history, not a decision made when booking.

It depends on the procedure — typically five to seven days for facial surgery and seven to ten for body contouring, so that dressings, drains and the first wound check are done before you sit on a plane. Flying too early raises the risk of clots and of swelling you cannot have assessed. Your exact date is set by the surgeon, not by your return ticket.

Ask before you book, and get the answer in writing. Reputable surgeons quote a revision policy up front: which situations are covered, for how long, and what you would pay for theatre and accommodation even when the surgeon's fee is waived. Revision rates of a few percent are normal in aesthetic surgery; a clinic claiming zero is not being straight with you.

Purely cosmetic procedures, essentially never. But where there is a documented functional problem — obstructed breathing, a restricted visual field, back pain from breast hypertrophy, a hernia repaired during abdominoplasty — part of the treatment may be reimbursable. That requires documentation prepared before surgery, not after, and it is worth raising with your insurer early.

It depends on the operation: five to seven days after rhinoplasty or eyelid surgery, seven to ten after liposuction or breast surgery, and ten to fourteen after a tummy tuck or BBL. The limit is not the wound but the clot risk from sitting still. Wear compression stockings, walk the aisle every hour and drink water. Never let a clinic book your return flight for the day after surgery.

Nicotine narrows the small blood vessels that feed healing skin, and surgery already cuts many of them. The result is wound edges that die, scars that widen and, in facelifts and tummy tucks, skin loss that needs further surgery to repair. Stop four weeks before and stay off for four weeks after — vapes and patches count, because nicotine is the problem, not the smoke.

Yes. Most surgeons operate up to a BMI of about 30 and decline above 35, because complication rates climb sharply: more wound infection, more clots and a longer anaesthetic. Body contouring also gives a poorer result on a body that is still changing. Reaching a stable weight you can maintain for six months matters more than the number itself. A clinic that never refuses anyone should worry you.

Yes, but total anaesthesia time is the safety limit — most surgeons keep it under six hours. Sensible combinations pair one large procedure with a small one: tummy tuck plus liposuction, or breast surgery plus eyelids. Stacking three big operations raises clot risk, blood loss and infection considerably. If a clinic agrees to everything you ask for in one sitting, that is a commercial answer rather than a surgical one.

Ask for the surgeon's full name and specialist registration number, then check it against the Turkish Ministry of Health physician registry, which is public and searchable online. The recognised title is Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery. Doctors from other specialties do legally perform some cosmetic procedures, so the title matters. A clinic that will not give you a name before you pay a deposit is the clearest warning sign there is.

Most complications appear in the first two weeks, which is why you should not fly home too early. Before you travel, get three things in writing: a full operative report in English, a named contact reachable outside office hours, and the clinic's revision policy including who pays for a return flight. Your home surgeon will treat an emergency but is not obliged to correct someone else's elective result.

Compare what the price excludes, not what it includes. Suspicious quotes usually leave out the anaesthetist's fee, the hospital night, compression garments, medication and follow-up visits, then add them on arrival. Two other markers: a price given before anyone has seen your photographs, and a discount that expires if you do not pay today. Ask for an itemised quote and compare three clinics on the same list.

Plan seven to ten days for most procedures and up to fourteen for body contouring. The schedule is consultation and tests on day one, surgery on day two, one or two nights in hospital, then dressing changes and a final check before you leave. The last appointment is the one that matters: it is where stitches come out and any early problem is caught while you are still in the country.