Face lift surgery is a surgical procedure designed to smooth the loose skin on the facial skin, jowls, and neck in both men and women. Candidates for a facelift include those with deep lines or folds running from the corner of the nose to the corner of the mouth, loss of a well-defined jawline, deep wrinkles in the cheeks, and loose skin, wrinkles or excess fat in the neck. In this procedure, underlying tissues are tightened, excess fat is removed, and the skin is gracefully re-draped for a natural and more youthful appearance. A facelift (technically known as rhytidectomy) can't stop the aging process. What it can do is make the patient look younger improving the most visible signs of aging by removing excess fat, tightening underlying muscles, and redraping the skin of your face and neck. A facelift can be done alone, or in conjunction with other procedures such as a forehead lift, eyelid surgery, or nose reshaping.

If the patient has had an original face lift operation a "preventive maintenance program" can then be implemented. This is particularly indicated in younger individuals who can maintain a youthful facial appearance for the remainder of their life by having periodic "tuck ups" every few years. Many celebrities are known to have had this procedure!!

Patients with systemic diseases, high blood pressure, heart disease, or obesity are not acceptable candidates for this type of surgery. Patients with a short, stocky neck cannot expect the same amount of improvement as those with more favourable anatomy.

The operation is usually performed with local anaesthesia and sedation. The incisions are made inside the hair line wherever possible but the hair is not cut before the operation. The hair, though, should be shampooed thoroughly before entering the hospital. Infrequently there may be some thinning of the hair for a short distance on each side of the incision line. If this occurs, the thin area can be covered by combing the adjacent hair over it. The site of the incisions will be discussed during the preoperative visit. There is little pain and discomfort following the operation. Remember that the swelling and discolourations are temporary, as are minor changes in the configuration of the hair line which may occur and are usually unnoticed by the observers or even by the patients.

There may be some areas of numbness particularly around the ear which improve to a great extent within three to six months. Some patches of numbness may persist indefinitely.

Closing of the incisions is performed in such a manner as to exert no tension on the lines in front of the ear, where the scars are usually inconspicuous without makeup. The tension resulting from the stretched and lifted tissue is thus distributed to the areas behind the ear and the back of the ear skirting the hair line. These scars are therefore destined to be more visible and have to be camouflaged by combing the hair. At times, they may require a small adjustment under local freezing eight to twelve months after.

This web page (Pictures & Content) has been sponsored by "Your Clinic Name & Link Here"