Face Lift

There are many terms used today for lifting the lower two thirds of the face and neck. We feel the most fitting term in faces with more obvious signs of aging in lower face and neck is the Cheek-Neck Lift. In younger faces beginning to show jowls and wattle formation, the Mini Lift works beautifully. These procedures rejuvenate the cheeks and restore the jawline and tone the neck.

Almost all patients find that undergoing a lift is far easier than they had anticipated. There may be some minor stiffness and soreness, but patients experience no significant pain. Patients return the day after surgery to have their dressing removed and their hair washed. All the stitches used are almost as fine as a hair and break up on their own in five or six days. Returning to work is usually possible eight to 12 days after surgery.

A lift tightens the contours of the jawline and neck by lifting the soft tissues and repositioning them gently to regain a vibrant and youthful contour, thus refreshing, rejuvenating, and restoring femininity in an age-appropriate fashion.

Time does go on, and the face will have aged will, but at a less accelerated rate. After 10 years, the face will age more gracefully because of the benefits of the procedure. The lifts do not eliminate fine or deep wrinkles or sun damage, but there are other techniques— Light Chemical Peels, Microdermabrasion, Fillers, Volumizers, Botox—to address these problems.

How long a lift lasts is different for each patient. It is important to do periodic maintenance with skin care, minimally invasive procedures, “tuck-ups” and so on from time to time. Your lifestyle choices, bone structure, skin type, sun exposure, tobacco use, and heredity all play a role in determining how many years can be erased and for how long. There will come a time when the patient will decide to return to “freshen up” work that was done.

On the day of your procedure, you’ll arrive at our office early to be greeted by a nurse. She will escort you to our pre-procedure room, and you will change into a clinical gown. Dr. Truswell will greet you and go over once again what to expect and review any last minute concerns you may have. You will also meet our anesthetist. We use monitored anesthesia care (MAC) for our procedures. MAC is used for extremity surgery, cosmetic facial surgery, and if you are familiar with it, routine colonoscopy.

The anesthetist will start an IV, administer medication, and your next experience is being wide-awake at the end of the procedure. Patients who have monitored anesthesia care do not experience nausea or vomiting. After a light snack and something to drink, you will be discharged.

The reason we choose this anesthesia is patient safety and comfort. Most facial plastic surgeons use either monitored anesthesia care or general anesthesia.

It is normal for patients to be anxious beforehand. Today many folks are on prescription medications. Relatively large volumes of local anesthetic are injected with epinephrine (adrenaline). This increases the heart rate and can be accompanied by cardiac rhythm disturbances. The anesthetist is trained in keeping the patient stable, safe, unawares throughout the procedure, and is trained in managing irregularities in blood pressure and heart rhythm. One of our guidelines is “Safety first!”