Plastic Surgery

Considering a Facelift?

As people age, the effects of gravity, exposure to the sun, and the stresses of daily life can be seen in their faces. Deep creases form between the nose and mouth; the jawline grows slack and jowly; folds and fat deposits appear around the neck.

A facelift (technically known as rhytidectomy) can’t stop this aging process. What it can do is “set back the clock,” 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, a cheek lift, chin surgery or nose reshaping.

The Best Candidate…

The best candidate for a facelift is a man or woman whose face and neck have begun to sag, but whose skin still has some elasticity and whose bone structure is strong and well-defined. People of all ages considering a face lift should consult a plastic surgeon to find out if it is the right procedure for you. A facelift can make you look younger and fresher, and it may enhance your self-confidence in the process. But it can’t give you a totally different look, nor can it restore the health and vitality of your youth. Before you decide to have surgery, think carefully about your expectations and discuss them with your surgeon.

Planning Your Surgery

Facelifts are very individualized procedures. In your initial consultation, Dr. Orloff will evaluate your face, including the skin and underlying bone, and discuss your goals for the surgery. Also, by evaluating your medical history Dr. Orloff can identify medical conditions that could cause problems during or after surgery. Be sure to tell Dr. Orloff if you smoke or are taking any drugs or medications, especially aspirin or other drugs that affect clotting.

Preparing For Your Surgery

Dr. Orloff will give you specific instructions on how to prepare for surgery, including guidelines on eating and drinking, smoking, and taking or avoiding medications. Also, the use of supplements and vitamins can improve outcome and reduce healing time. Another important issue is preparing the skin for optimum results prior to surgery. We can help there with the right products and guidance. Carefully following these instructions will help your surgery go more smoothly. If you smoke, it’s especially important to stop at least a week or two before and after surgery; smoking inhibits blood flow to the skin, and can interfere with the healing of your incision areas.

The Surgery

Facelifts are usually performed in an outpatient surgical center under general anesthesia. They normally take several  hours. Incisions are made in areas relatively hidden along the hairline and in the natural creases around the ear. During surgery, excess fat can be removed, muscles can be tightened, structures such as the cheeks can be repositioned and excess skin can be removed while redraping the remaining skin for a natural, more toned appearance. When performed by a qualified Plastic Surgeon, complications are infrequent and usually minor. You can reduce any risks by closely following Dr. Orloff’s advice both before and after surgery.

After Your Surgery

Depending on the procedure or combination of procedures performed, swelling and bruising can occur, but your face will rapidly return to normal. As with any situation that involves healing, factors such as your health, fitness and adherence to your physician’s instructions contribute to recovery time. Also important to speeding recovery and maintaining results is proper skin care, which we are glad to assist you with.

A facelift is technically known as a rhytidectomy which means literally “surgical removal of wrinkles”. This removal of wrinkles, which is in effect removal of excess skin is accomplished by redraping the face and neck skin of the patient seeking a more youthful appearance. There are two methods of redraping, one involving only the outer skin, and the other also taking into account the underlying tissues.

Facelifts are more than a hundred years old, with the first such surgery performed by Eugene Hollander in Berlin, Germany right after the turn of the last century. With the importance of a youthful appearance in our society, the facelift has gained tremendously in popularity, and today it takes place number five of the most popular cosmetic procedures.

Facelifts work better in women than in men and a woman with a thin skin and good bone structure is a very good candidate for the procedure. Facelifts are best for eliminating wrinkles in the cheeks and loose skin folds in the neck. A facelift is not very well suited to treat the deep lines running down from the corner of the mouth to the chin (marionette lines) and deep lines down from the nose to the lips ( nasolabial lines.) If these lines are present the injection of a filler would be the most appropriate remedy. Both the facelift and the injection of a filler together can produce the desired results.

In these before and after pictures is is clearly visible how the wrinkles on the cheek and the deep folds on the neck were significantly reduced.