Forehead Reduction Combined with Rhinoplasty or Eyelid Surgery
Forehead reduction can be combined with rhinoplasty, blepharoplasty (eyelid surgery) or a brow lift when Op. Dr. Ahmet Dilber decides you are suitable. You have one general anaesthetic and one recovery period; a combined operation can take 5 to 6 hours. Adding rhinoplasty lengthens your time in Istanbul: the nasal cast and internal splints come off on day 7, and you go home on day 8.
Send your photos on WhatsAppRead about forehead reduction
Before and after, forehead reduction with rhinoplasty. Results vary.
Before and after, forehead reduction with rhinoplasty. Results vary.
Before and after, forehead reduction with rhinoplasty. Results vary.
Ratings as of November 2026
Acıbadem Bakırköy
where Dr. Dilber operates, with one night of hospital care
1 year
of follow-up after surgery, in person or on WhatsApp
Licensed
for international health tourism by the Turkish Ministry of Health
Which procedures can be combined with forehead reduction?
Combined surgery is possible if you are suitable. The procedures most often combined with forehead reduction are rhinoplasty, blepharoplasty and a brow lift. Forehead reduction shortens the distance between the hairline and the root of the nose, so the height of the forehead and the shape of the nose both affect how balanced the face looks. Some patients want both changed at once.
Blepharoplasty treats the eyelids: excess skin on the upper lids, or bags under the lower lids. In a combination it is done under general anaesthesia. Forehead reduction does not lift the eyebrows, though a minimal lift can be requested. If your brows sit low, a brow lift through the scalp can be added, with no visible surface scar.
Each procedure needs its own reason, and you agree to each one separately. Having one operation planned is not a reason to add another. Dr. Dilber may advise against a combination, or suggest doing the procedures at different times, if your health or the length of the operation makes that the better choice. Read more about Dr. Dilber.
Combined forehead reduction and rhinoplasty results
Before and after photos of Op. Dr. Ahmet Dilber's patients, from @drahmetdilber on Instagram. Results vary.
How does a combined plan change your stay in Istanbul?
For forehead reduction alone, you arrive the day before surgery, stay one night in hospital, and after the plaster is removed on day 4 you can fly home. With eyelid surgery or a brow lift added, the check is on day 5. With rhinoplasty, Dr. Dilber removes the nasal cast and internal splints on day 7 at the practice, and you go home on day 8.
Tape goes on when the cast comes off; keep it for one week and remove it yourself at home. Sleep with your head on 3 pillows for 1 week, protect the nose from knocks, especially for the first 6 months, and wear no glasses for 2 months. Recovery overlaps: you can shower from day 2 and avoid strenuous exercise for 6 weeks. Work resumes after 5 days for forehead reduction alone, or after 10 days with rhinoplasty.
Your dates are agreed together with you before you book a return flight. The recovery guide covers forehead reduction day by day.
Forehead reduction alone and with rhinoplasty
Operation time
Forehead reduction alone: 1.5 to 2 hours
With rhinoplasty added: Combined surgery can take 5 to 6 hoursAnaesthesia
Forehead reduction alone: General
With rhinoplasty added: General, given once for bothDressings off
Forehead reduction alone: Forehead plaster, day 4
With rhinoplasty added: Forehead day 4; nasal cast and splints day 7Leave Istanbul
Forehead reduction alone: Day 4, after the plaster check
With rhinoplasty added: Day 8, after the day 7 checkAt home
Forehead reduction alone: Back to work after 5 days
With rhinoplasty added: Remove nasal tape on day 14; work after 10 daysFollow-up
Forehead reduction alone: Photos at 1, 3, 6 and 12 months
With rhinoplasty added: Same schedule; Istanbul residents seen in person
What happens step by step with a combined operation?
Before you travel: photo review
Send front, left and right photos of your forehead with your hair pulled back, plus photos of your nose or eyes and your medical history, on WhatsApp. Dr. Dilber's assistant presents them, and Dr. Dilber decides whether a combined plan suits you. Stop smoking, vaping and blood thinners at least 10 days before surgery; no smoking for 6 weeks after.
The day before: consultation in Ataköy
Dr. Dilber examines you himself at his practice in Ataköy, discusses the risks, agrees each change with you and marks the new hairline. For rhinoplasty he also offers a simulation. The same day you go to Acıbadem Bakırköy Hospital for blood tests and one anaesthetic examination covering the whole operation.
Surgery day: one operation
All the agreed procedures are done in one operation under general anaesthesia, so you are put to sleep once. Rhinoplasty uses the open technique, through a small incision across the columella, with a piezoelectric device for the nasal bone; any breathing correction is done in the same operation. Dr. Dilber performs each part himself. You stay one night in hospital and are up and walking the next day.
Days 1 to 7: two timetables
Bruising and swelling around the nose and eyes peak around day 3; a cold pack for 10 minutes an hour helps in the first 2 days. Shower from day 2 with warm or cold water, with no hot baths, and do not blow your nose until the splints are out. The forehead plaster comes off on day 4, the eyelids are checked on day 5, and the nasal cast and splints come off on day 7.
After you return home
You send photos on WhatsApp at 1, 3, 6 and 12 months, and Dr. Dilber and his assistants review the forehead, nose and eyelids; Istanbul residents are seen in person. After day 7, use saline spray 3 times a day for a month. The nose reaches its final shape at about 1 year. Read about aftercare after you fly home.
Your stay in Istanbul
You see Dr. Dilber at his practice in Ataköy, have surgery at Acıbadem Bakırköy Hospital and can stay at a nearby hotel.
The practice in Ataköy 
Acıbadem Bakırköy Hospital 
Patient room 
Hotel room, on request
Is one operation better than two separate ones?
Combining has practical advantages. You have one general anaesthetic, one hospital stay, one trip to Istanbul and one recovery period, because the time off work and the 6-week exercise break overlap rather than repeat. Facial procedures are commonly combined, and many patients prefer them together.
The trade-offs are real. The operation is longer, so you spend more time under anaesthesia. More areas heal at the same time, and swelling spreads across the forehead, nose and eyes.
Staging means two operations, two anaesthetics and two trips, each with a shorter recovery. It can suit you if you are unsure about the second procedure, if your health makes a long operation unwise, or if Dr. Dilber wants to see how one area heals first. He tells you which approach he recommends and why, and you decide with that information.
What are the risks of a combined operation?
Any cosmetic surgery carries risks. Each procedure keeps its own: across these operations they include bleeding, infection, numbness or altered sensation, a visible or widened scar, asymmetry and the need for revision. Forehead reduction can also cause hair loss along the incision. A combined operation also means more time under anaesthesia.
The American Society of Plastic Surgeons lists breathing difficulty among the risks of rhinoplasty, and dry eyes and difficulty closing the eyes among the risks of eyelid surgery. Dr. Dilber explains the risks of each procedure separately at the consultation, before you agree to anything. The risks are not simply added together.
After you return home, send photos on WhatsApp if you notice redness, discharge, increasing pain or changes in your breathing or vision; he advises whether you should see a doctor locally. Seek urgent care for severe symptoms.
Frequently asked questions
Plan to arrive the day before surgery and stay until day 8. On day 7 Dr. Dilber removes the nasal cast and internal splints and checks both areas, and you go home the next day. That is four days longer than forehead reduction alone, which allows departure on day 4 after the plaster check. Your dates are agreed together with you before you book flights.
Answer comes with the content seed.
Answer comes with the content seed.
Answer comes with the content seed.
Answer comes with the content seed.
Answer comes with the content seed.
Answer comes with the content seed.
Explore the practice
Before and after resultsBefore and after photos of Dr. Dilber's patients. Results vary.See the gallery →
Patient guide (PDF)The guide we send every patient: timeline, medication, aftercare.Download the guide →
Send your photos. Ask what can be combined.
Photograph your forehead from the front, left and right with your hair pulled back, and add photos of your nose or eyes. Dr. Dilber reviews them, and the team replies on WhatsApp with his view on each procedure.
