Short answer: after corrective jaw surgery, swelling is worst at 36 to 48 hours and improves over two to three weeks, most people eat soft food for about six weeks, and surgeons usually review patients weekly for the first two to three weeks (NHS hospital leaflets). Full recovery takes three to six months, and the jaws take 9 to 12 months to heal fully (AAOMS). For Korea, that usually means planning to stay two to three weeks after surgery, and having orthodontic follow-up arranged at home.
The first three weeks
This section covers corrective jaw surgery (orthognathic or two-jaw surgery), which moves the upper jaw, lower jaw or both. UK hospital leaflets differ on details, so each figure names its source.
| When | What usually happens | What it means for your trip |
|---|---|---|
| Days 0 to 3 | One night in hospital (Queen Victoria Hospital) to two or three days (Plymouth). In one UK surgeon’s series, 96 percent went home within 24 hours (Davies et al., 2025). Swelling is worst at 36 to 48 hours. | Book a hotel near the hospital for after discharge, and travel with a companion. |
| Around day 5 | First review of the elastics between the teeth (East Sussex). | A clinic visit you cannot skip. |
| Weeks 1 to 3 | Weekly reviews for two to three weeks (Queen Victoria Hospital). Stitches dissolve within two weeks. No nose blowing, and some nose bleeding for two weeks after upper-jaw surgery (East and North Herts). | Stay in Seoul through these reviews. Pack a blender bottle and soft food. |
| By week 3 | About half of the swelling has gone (van der Vlis et al., 2014). | Short, quiet outings if your surgeon agrees. |
Swelling, food and numbness over the months
- Swelling: in a 3D study of 49 patients, half of the swelling had gone by week 3 and 20 percent remained at three months, with small changes up to a year (van der Vlis et al., 2014).
- Food: soft food for about six weeks (Plymouth, East Sussex, East and North Herts), and no very hard or chewy food for three months (Plymouth).
- Work or study: two to four weeks off (Queen Victoria Hospital) or three to six weeks (Plymouth).
- Numbness of the lip or chin: six weeks to six months in most people, sometimes permanent (Plymouth). East and North Herts says recovery can take up to two years and feeling does not fully return in 5 percent.
- Braces: orthodontic treatment usually continues for about six months after surgery (Plymouth). Arrange an orthodontist at home before you travel.
- Healing: full recovery in three to six months, and 9 to 12 months for the jaws to heal fully (AAOMS).
Infection is the complication most likely to appear after you are home. In 512 French patients, 8 percent developed a surgical site infection, mostly in the lower jaw, appearing on average 31.5 days after surgery (Cousin et al., 2020). Ask your Korean clinic who will see you at home if this happens.
V-line and jaw-angle contouring
V-line surgery and jaw-angle reduction reshape the bone without moving the bite. We found no society or NHS recovery timeline for these operations. A study of 470 contouring patients at a Seoul clinic reported return to surgery for bleeding in under 1 percent and infection in about 1 percent, but no recovery times (Lee, 2025). Ask your clinic for its own written schedule of stitch removal, compression bandage use and follow-up visits.
What travel guidelines say about flying home
Two UK sources give advice for people who have surgery abroad. Neither comes from a trial, and both leave the final decision to your surgeon.
- NHS: air travel and major surgery both raise the risk of a blood clot. The NHS recommends not flying for 7 to 10 days after facial cosmetic procedures.
- British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS), 2023: when total travel time is around four hours or more, which covers any flight home from Korea to Europe, North America or Australia, people having a general anaesthetic of up to three hours should arrive at least 72 hours before surgery and stay one to two weeks after it. For operations over three hours, surgery on several areas, or a higher clot risk, BAAPS advises arriving a week before and staying two to four weeks after. BAAPS labels this guidance expert opinion.
- Before you leave: BAAPS asks for at least one review by the surgeon who operated on you before you travel home, and phone or video follow-up once you are back.
- On the plane: BAAPS recommends an aisle seat, plenty of water, walking during the flight and compression stockings.
None of the jaw surgery sources we checked gives a flying date. Two-jaw surgery under general anaesthetic that lasts more than three hours falls into the BAAPS group that should arrive a week before surgery and stay two to four weeks after. The weekly reviews in the first two to three weeks point the same way.
A sample 3-week plan for Korea
| Days | Plan |
|---|---|
| Day −7 to −1 | Arrive a week before surgery (BAAPS, for operations over three hours). Scans, orthodontic check and consultation. |
| Day 0 to 3 | Surgery and hospital stay. |
| Day 4 to 7 | Hotel near the clinic. Liquid and soft food. Elastics review. |
| Day 8 to 14 | Weekly review. Short walks, indoor places only. |
| Day 15 to 21 | Final review, records and X-rays in English, plan for orthodontics at home, then fly. |
Replace every date with the ones your clinic gives you. The Clinic KR trip planner lays them out day by day and flags a flight that is booked too early.
Questions to ask your clinic before you book flights
- Is my operation upper jaw, lower jaw, both, or contouring only, and how long will it take?
- How many nights will I stay in hospital?
- How many reviews do you need before I fly, and on which days?
- Will I have elastics or wires, and can I cut them in an emergency on the plane?
- Can I have my operation record, X-rays and scans in English for my orthodontist at home?
- Who do I contact from home if I get swelling, pus or fever weeks later?
FAQ
How long should I stay in Korea for two-jaw surgery?
Usually two to three weeks after surgery, to attend the weekly reviews. BAAPS suggests two to four weeks after operations longer than three hours.
How long does swelling last after jaw surgery?
It peaks at 36 to 48 hours. About half is gone by week 3, 20 percent remains at three months, and small changes continue for up to a year.
When can I eat normally after jaw surgery?
Most hospitals advise soft food for about six weeks and no very hard or chewy food for three months.
When can I fly after jaw surgery?
No jaw surgery guide or study we found gives a flying date. Your surgeon decides, usually after the first reviews.
Sources
- American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (MyOMS). Recovery from Orthognathic Surgery. Checked October 9, 2026.
- Queen Victoria Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. Orthognathic (jaw) surgery patient leaflet. Checked October 9, 2026.
- University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust. Orthognathic surgery patient information. Checked October 9, 2026.
- East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust. Orthognathic surgery. Checked October 9, 2026.
- East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust. Orthognathic surgery patient leaflet. Checked October 9, 2026.
- NHS. Cosmetic surgery abroad. Checked October 9, 2026.
- British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons. BAAPS Cosmetic Tourism Guidelines, September 2023, v1.
- van der Vlis M, Dentino KM, Vervloet B, et al. Postoperative swelling after orthognathic surgery: a prospective volumetric analysis. J Oral Maxillofac Surg. 2014;72(11):2241-7. PubMed 25236819.
- Davies LA, Jones SD, Ramkumar DP. Bimaxillary osteotomies as a less than 24-hour stay procedure. Br J Oral Maxillofac Surg. 2025;63(5):368-372. PubMed 40345943.
- Cousin AS, Bouletreau P, Giai J, et al. Severity and long-term complications of surgical site infections after orthognathic surgery: a retrospective study. Sci Rep. 2020;10(1):12015. PubMed 32694715.
- Lee T. Comparisons of the Clinical Outcomes of Mandible Contouring Surgery With or Without the Use of Intraoral Drains. Aesthetic Plast Surg. 2025;49(5):1176-1179. PubMed 39384603.
This guide gives general information, not medical advice. Read how we research and check these guides.