Had forehead reconstruction--now I have bumps above my brows? Thoughts?

[emilycdcanada]

I had forehead reconstruction and jaw contouring done with an experienced FFS surgeon June 30th. Overall things look ok, but I'm not overly happy, and I am still quite swollen in my jaw at 2.5 months.

My question is related to my forehead reconstruction. Before surgery my forehead was smooth with no lumps or bumps or anything other than an old scar from a childhood injury just above my nose. Now I have 2-3 obvious bumps above my brows. They are not hard however and if I press them they disappear. What they look like is when one is angry and one tightens their brows it kind of bunches up the skin above the brow and you get a few bumps here and there, if that makes sense. Anyway, I now have these bumps permanently and although they are not incredibly obvious, they are visible in almost every picture I take of myself and are very visible in overhead light, making me look sort of angry 24/7. The movement I have in my brows is similar to what I had before surgery so I'm not sure why this is happening other than some sort of weird tension on the muscles.

I've spoken to my surgeon and his initial suggestion was that they were air and they would dissipate, but now I'm at 2.5 months it's too long for that in his opinion. My feeling is they're related to the facial muscles in some way, like it's permanently tightened. So I'm getting to a point now where I need to decide:

1. Do I go back to the same surgeon to try to fix the problem--my forehead would need to be cut open again and if he gave me these in the first place will he do a better job the second time? He does seem very willing to fix it though, but I feel like he's not convinced it's a facial muscle issue.

2. Try to live with them. They are really annoying because my forehead was smooth previously, but I'm also worried more surgery will make them worse or I may end up with more damage.

3. Go somewhere else to try to get it redone.

I'm not sure where I'm leaning right now. I knew my forehead wouldn't be perfect, and even without the bumps I have mixed feelings, but I was told I had a shallow sinus which limited setback. My eyes are still fairly sunken and I still feel like my brow is a bit heavy, but I would be happy enough if it wasn't for the bumps.

I guess I'd like to get others' input on whether this is an acceptable flaw to live with or if I can do better. If it can be fixed I want it fixed.

Thoughts?

Here's a pic at night with an overhead street lamp. Red circles show where new bumps appeared after surgery:

https://imgur.com/a/9WTRA

[AlexisRene]

 Really sorry that your procedure turned out this way for you. However, I would wait a full year for all swelling to subside & things to settle before deciding what to do. Pending of course if your surgeon will still honor their word about doing the revision next year. They should since you have noted it currently. As you have mentioned, the obvious risk is opening the original forehead incision. As well as the cost of travel, stay & time off of work among other things to consider.

Did the surgeon recommend massaging the area(s) or anything? Am not sure if that would help, just asking.

[Dani]

I had FFS about 8 months ago and it took about 4 to 6 months before my face completely healed. I would be concerned after 6 months if the bumps were still there.

If the bumps are just trapped air or fluid, then a syringe and needle should be able to suck out whatever is in there.

Did your surgeon have you wear an elastic bandage over your forehead? Mine did and I feel that helped reduce the swelling.

[emilycdcanada]

The areas are definitely not related to swelling with almost absolute certainty. The only swelling present in my face now at 2.5 months post is in my jaw and chin.

I wore ace bandages on my forehead and around my jaw for 2 weeks and then most nights for the next month. I noticed them only once the swelling went down around my brow area at around 3 weeks post.

They could still be trapped air or fluid I suppose, but my surgeon thinks that, in the case of it being air, it's been too long and it should have gone away by now. The last I spoke with him he was unsure what it was, so I'm not sure where to go from here. They have not changed in shape or appearance at all since i first noticed them and my gut is telling me that they're there for good.

I have not tried massaging no, nor was it ever suggested by my surgeon as I think we're both in agreement that it's not swelling at this point..

[Debra]

Hey! I had bumps on my forehead the first few months as well after FFS. My surgeon said it was normal and had to do with the 'deep stitches' he'd used to keep the hairline in place or something.....stiching onto the skull or something weird.

Anyway, despite the surgeon's lack of recommendation for massage, I did several months of facial / scar massage on both the hairline scar and the forehead bumps. This helped significantly and now it's not noticable although even today, if I raise my eyebrows all the way, you can kind of see a dimple in the middle top of my forehead where the rest of the skin wrinkles around.....but it doesn't really look weird and I'm the only one who really notices it.