Risks and complications: what is the course of healing, and what is a complication?
A list of risks usually arrives as one sequence in which swelling and thrombosis stand side by side. That makes them look equally likely and equally serious, and they are not. This page explains how they are divided and how they differ.
How are risks divided into three groups?
Risks are divided by two criteria together: how often they happen and what is done about them. Poliklinika Barbel uses three groups — expected, occasional and rare.
Expected. Expected is what happens to almost everyone and is part of the course of healing, not a complication: swelling, bruising, numbness of the skin around the incision, a feeling of tightness, a scar that is red for months before it fades. This is not a sign that something is wrong.
Occasional. Occasional is what happens to some patients and has a known way of being resolved. The procedure page also says, next to each such item, what is done if it happens.
Rare. Rare is what rarely happens and, when it does, is serious. These events are named specifically, not described in general terms.
The division itself carries information: a reader who knows that swelling belongs to the first group does not spend a week thinking that something has gone wrong.
What is part of the expected course of healing?
The expected course of healing after an operation includes swelling, bruising, numbness of the skin around the incision, a feeling of tightness and a scar that is, in the first months, red and firmer than it will be later.
A scar after an operation changes over months. The final appearance of the scar is assessed together with the result of the procedure, after six months.
→ How long does recovery take?
When should you get in touch immediately?
These are the signs that distinguish a complication from expected healing. If any of them appears, contact the clinic the same day, without waiting for the check-up:
- a temperature above 38 °C or chills
- bleeding that soaks the dressing and does not stop with pressure
- pain that gets worse instead of easing, especially if it is on one side
- swelling that grows suddenly or is clearly greater on one side
- redness that spreads around the wound, warmth, pus or an unpleasant smell
- a wound that opens or a stitch that has given way
- calf pain and swelling, shortness of breath or chest pain — call the emergency services, not the clinic
In the first days after the procedure, get in touch by message or call on the clinic's WhatsApp: +385 98 306902.
What are the risks of every operation?
Some risks do not depend on the type of procedure but on the fact that it is an operation. The common surgical risks are bleeding, a collection of blood or fluid in the operating area, wound infection, impaired wound healing and thrombosis.
The risks that come from anaesthesia are described separately, together with data on how often they occur.
→ What are the risks of anaesthesia?
What does the clinic do to reduce risk?
Before the procedure. Poliklinika Barbel carries out a consultation and an anaesthetic assessment before the procedure, requests the required laboratory tests and, when needed, the opinion of an additional specialist. If something needs to be resolved before the procedure — high blood pressure, high blood sugar, an unrecognised inflammation, anaemia — the date is moved until it is resolved.
During the procedure. At Poliklinika Barbel the anaesthetist is a full-time member of staff. Procedures are carried out in the clinic's own operating theatres, with its own sterilisation and central gas supply.
After the procedure. After general anaesthesia the patient stays in the clinic for at least six hours. Check-ups for the first three months and dressing changes for our own patients are included in the price of the procedure.
Before a procedure is even agreed. Some of the people who come for a consultation are advised not to have surgery — because they have no need for the procedure or do not have realistic expectations of the possible outcome.
What if the result is not as agreed?
The result of a procedure is assessed at a check-up, when the swelling has gone and the scar has matured — not in the first weeks. If the result differs from what was agreed at the examination, the correction is carried out by the same surgeon.
What can the patient do?
What most changes the risk in an individual case is what the doctor and the anaesthetist know about the patient before the procedure: earlier illnesses, earlier operations and anaesthetics, allergies and all medicines and preparations taken. Information that does not reach them cannot enter the plan for the procedure.
After the procedure the same holds in reverse: what looks different from what was agreed at the check-up is easiest to resolve while it is early.
Care at home is also up to the patient. Healing takes weeks and months and almost all of it takes place outside the clinic. Wearing a support garment, avoiding strain, scar care and not smoking are not a formality: each of these instructions reduces one specific risk, from excess skin to a wound that heals slowly. A well-performed procedure can give a weaker result because care was skipped.
Detailed preparation instructions are given to the patient once a date is agreed, in writing and in a conversation with the nurse.
Frequently asked questions about risks
Is swelling after an operation normal? Swelling is part of the expected course of healing, together with bruising, numbness of the skin around the incision and a feeling of tightness. It is not a complication.
How long does a scar stay red? A scar after an operation is, in the first months, red and firmer than it will be later, and it changes over months. The final appearance is assessed after six months, together with the result of the procedure.
What happens if a complication does occur? For every event in the “occasional” group there is a known way of resolving it, which is described next to that item on the procedure page. Check-ups for the first three months and dressing changes for our own patients are included in the price of the procedure.
Whom do I contact if something worries me after the procedure? You contact Poliklinika Barbel by call or WhatsApp message on +385 98 306902; the same number applies outside opening hours. You do not wait for the next check-up and you do not go to your family doctor first: the surgeon who operated on you knows best what is expected and what is not.
Will I know in advance which complications are possible with my particular procedure? Yes. Before the procedure you receive a written document that lists the possible complications of that procedure individually and how they are dealt with, and you sign it only after you have taken it home. The purpose is that, if a complication happens, you recognise it and get in touch, instead of being frightened.
What if a complication occurs because a procedure was not performed well? If the outcome deviates from what was agreed, and the reason lies neither in the course of healing nor in your body's reaction, the correction policy described above applies: a conversation with the surgeon, an assessment at the check-up and an agreement on the correction. In addition you have the right to a second opinion and to see all the documentation, including the certificates of implants placed.
Medical review: doctors of Poliklinika Barbel · October 2026.