FAQs

For most of our cosmetic procedures sedation will not be necessary but can be provided if you prefer. Most procedures only require local anaesthetic. Your cosmetic surgeon can discuss whether sedation or local anaesthetic is best for you.

Bella Vou has its very own state of the art treatment facilities on site, where we are able to perform most of our cosmetic treatments. However if your procedure requires an overnight stay, your cosmetic surgery will be performed in hospital.

Depending on what procedure you are having you may need to allow a few days or weeks for recovery. Your cosmetic surgeon will provide all the information you need to know regarding what the cosmetic procedure involves and how long your recovery should take at your initial consultation.

Complications are rare but can arise with any surgery. If you and your cosmetic surgeon are unhappy with the result of your cosmetic surgery you will be entitled further surgery to improve the result and Bella Vou would not charge a fee for this.

As well as providing detailed testimonials and 'before and after' photos of procedures, we can provide an opportunity for you to speak to our patients and ask any questions you may have at one of our open evenings.

For more information, read our client stories or find our next upcoming event.

Depending on what cosmetic surgery procedure you’re having you may not be able to eat and drink prior to surgery. Your surgeon will provide all the necessary information you need at your initial consultation.

Yes of course! Our friendly reception team have a fountain of knowledge in regards to the services we offer here at Bella Vou. If you're passing, or indulging in some shopping at The Pantiles, we would be happy for you to come in and talk to us about any surgery or treatment you may be interested in.

If you are looking to having an appointment with our consultants, although we can try our best for you to see someone immediately, we always ask that you book your consultation in advance. This is to ensure that we can make your appointment with the most relevant member of our team, who would be best suited for your needs.

To ensure that Bella Vou are performing to the top standard as should be expected by all of our patients, we are regularly inspected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), who are the independent regulator of health and social care in England. 

On their most recent visit, Bella Vou has achieved the highest “Outstanding” rating from the Care Quality Commission. Click here to view their findings

No matter which surgeon you decide to perform your surgery or treatment, they should be registered with the General Medical Council. This provides the reassurance that they are fully qualified to carry out cosmetic surgery, professionally and safely. If they hold a qualification for a specific area, this should be also be added to their profile.

Our lead cosmetic surgeon, Amir Nakhdjevani, is currently on the Specialist Register with reference number 4587844.

For more information about the Specialist Register, visit the General Medical Council website's page containing Information on the Specialist Register.

There is a register, however, your surgeon does not have to be registered on this. A plastic surgeon on the specialist register is not necessarily a good cosmetic surgeon. Plastic surgery has different specialisms, which include reconstructive and burns victims. So, they can be added to the Specialist Register for Plastic surgery, yet have no experience of aesthetic surgery.

Our lead cosmetic surgeon, Amir Nakhdjevani, is currently on the Specialist Register with reference number 4587844.

For more information about the Specialist Register, visit the General Medical Council website's page containing information on the Specialist Register.

For the majority of procedures that we carry out at Bella Vou under local anaesthetic, there will be no restrictions as to when you can fly. Each airline has its own regulations about flying after surgery. Check with your airline before you fly, particularly if you've had complicated surgery.

Ideally, we suggest to leave flying for at least 1 - 2 weeks from surgery. This will allow us to check your wounds and to ensure all is healing well before you fly out. Generally, there are no medical reasons as to why you can not fly following a local anaesthetic procedure. Following a general anaesthetic, we advise to wait at least two weeks for short haul flights and at least 6 weeks for long haul flights.

As a rough guide, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) say that before flying:

• allow four to five days after simple abdominal surgery (belly button surgery)
• 10 days after more complicated abdominal surgery
• for an abdominoplasty, waiting atleast 2 weeks would be advisable. You will not be completely mobile following the surgery and are at a much higher risk of developing a clot in the legs (DVT) or lungs (pulmonary embolus).

We suggest that you wear compression stockings and make sure you keep yourself well-hydrated throughout the flight. You should also check your travel insurance policy carefully, as you may need to inform the insurance company that you've recently had surgery. This could increase the cost of your travel insurance.

It really depends on the site of surgery but as a general rule, you should wait 2 weeks after surgery and then can start very gentle exercising  (limited to walking). From 2 - 4 weeks, you can gently build up the level of exercise and after 6 weeks up to 3 months reach back to the level that you were at prior to having the surgery.

With abdominal surgery, we would advise closer to 6 weeks before starting exercise as the area is much larger and needs longer for the abdomen to settle. For Facelift or Eyelid Surgery, we would advise 2 weeks prior to commencing gentle exercise and then building up slowly up to 6 weeks.

Yoga and pilates are fantastic exercise routines but should not be started until 6 weeks. The  different positions can place a lot of strain on the wounds and result in stretched scars.

You should not carry out any heavy lifting, bending for at least 6 weeks. All this advice is to help keep the blood pressure low and therefore reduce the amount of swelling and bruising post-operatively.

Most surgical incisions will take approximately 2 weeks to heal and be considered closed. However, the overall length of time for the scar to heal is 9-12 months. This is the time it takes for any scar to mature into a pale and flat scar.

Immediately after surgery, the strength of the scar gradually increases and the maximum tension that can be reached in the wound is achieved around 4-6 weeks. It is advisable to avoid massaging the scar prior to 4 weeks as this can result in stretching of the weaker scar.

Wounds also lose their moisturising ability for a variable period of time after surgery/ injury. Moisturising creams can be used after 2 weeks from surgery to keep the skin healthy. You can combine moisturising and massage after 4 weeks.

The scar goes through various stages and initially will be red and raised. It will eventually become flat and pale. In the first 6-9 months following surgery, it is advisable to use high protection cream (SPF 30-50) over the scar. during this time, on contact with the sun, the scar will go red straight away as it is still in it's immature state. Once the scar has matured, then you can go back to using your regular sun protectant cream.

Some scars may stretch following surgery. It is advised to leave wounds for approximately 3 months from surgery to allow for any swelling or bruising to settle.

Arnica is a very well known homeopathic remedy that topically is used to help reduce bruising. With respect to the tablet form, we advise against using this before surgery. Through our experience, we found more bruising and bleeding in patients undergoing surgery, who had taken arnica tablets prior to their surgery.

We do advise the use of arnica cream, if required, after atleast 2 weeks to aid in reduction of bruising. Although this is a very useful cream in reducing bruising, due to its powerful anti-inflammatory agent. It can also cause irritation or extensive rashes with its use.

We will advise you on what to do before and after your surgery to achieve the most favourable outcome.

There are several effects of smoking that can cause problems with wound healing.

Firstly, the carbon monoxide within cigarettes reduce the amount of oxygen that is carried by blood cells. This means less oxygen is travelling to the healing wound. This can increase the wound healing time and subsequently result in wound breakdown or wider scars.

Secondly, the nicotine causes a problem by causing vasoconstriction (blood vessels close up). This results in no blood or oxygen or nutrients at the wound and no way of the breakdown products to be filtered away. This can lead to wound breakdown; infection and subsequent sub-optimal results. The effects of nicotine last 45-60 minutes following a cigarette and therefore can leave the healing wound without a blood supply for an hour or more.

The use of e-cigarettes with nicotine; nicotine patches; or nicotine gum has a similar effect and needs to be avoided.

Within the first week you will come back to see the surgeon so we can assess your recovery.