PARAFFINOMA REVISITED - A POSTOPERATIVE CONDITION FOLLOWING RHINOPLASTY NASAL PACKING

Paraffin impregnated tulle is frequently used as a post-operative dres sing after surgical repair of wounds, on skin-donor sites and in packi ng of tissue cavities. Historically, paraffin has been injected into v arious sites of the body and paraffinoma is a well-described complicat ion. Despite this, nasal packing with paraffin gauze is still common a fter rhinoplasty. We report a case of paraffinoma occurring after rhin oplasty and discuss the avoidance of this rare but serious complicatio n and suggest silicon mesh as an alternative dressing.