How do I prepare for a clitoral hood reduction procedure?
Your surgeon will provide thorough preoperative instructions, answer any questions you may have before your surgery, take a detailed medical history, and perform a physical exam to determine your fitness for surgery.
In advance of your procedure, your surgeon may ask you to:
- Stop smoking before undergoing surgery to promote better healing.
- Avoid taking aspirin, certain anti-inflammatory drugs, and some herbal medications that can cause increased bleeding.
- Hydrate before and after surgery for safe recovery.
A clitoral hood reduction is usually an outpatient procedure. You’ll need to arrange for someone to drive you home after surgery and stay with you at least the first night following surgery.
What can I expect the day of my clitoral hood reduction procedure?
Be sure to consult with your surgeon before your surgery so you have the most accurate expectations.
- You may have your clitoral hood reduction in an accredited hospital, free-standing ambulatory facility, or office-based surgical suite.
- Most clitoral hood reduction procedures take less than an hour to complete but may take longer depending on your specific anatomy.
- Local anesthesia or intravenous sedation is common for clitoral hood reduction procedures. In some instances, the surgeon will use general anesthesia.
- For your safety during the surgery, various monitors will be used to check your heart, blood pressure, pulse, and the amount of oxygen circulating in your blood.
- Your surgeon will carefully measure the excessive areas, remove excess skin and tissue, then close the tissue using multiple layers of dissolvable stitches.
- After your surgery, you will go to a recovery area for continued monitoring.
You likely can go home after a short observation period unless you and your aesthetic plastic surgeon agree on an overnight stay or have made other plans for your immediate postoperative recovery.