Facelift surgery: risks, benefits, and everything else you need to know
Facelift surgery, also known as rhytidectomy, is a cosmetic procedure that is done to give the face a younger appearance.
A facelift focuses on an area of the face that is commonly known as the “jowls”, it can tighten hanging, loose skin around the jaw area. Deep creases are also removed around the nose and mouth, and excess fat and skin around the chin and neck are also affected.
The face can lose its youthful look due to many factors, including thinning skin, facial fat loss, sun damage, smoking, and gravity, and can even be caused by stress.
In combination with surgical procedures that affect the eyelids, brows, cheeks, and forehead, the facelift procedure can tighten these underlying issues.
What is involved during a facelift?
New methods and techniques are being developed constantly, this is done to improve cosmetic surgery procedures. Depending on your desired results, the facelift procedure can vary. The procedure begins with a local anesthetic and sedatives or your doctor will use general anesthesia.
You can expect your facelift to take anywhere between 2 to 5 hours, and the patient can go home after the surgery.
The doctor will create an incision in front of the ear that extends into the hairline and also behind the ear into the scalp during a typical facelift. The doctor will then begin to lift the skin off the muscles in the face, gently pulls it upward, and then removes any excess skin.
What a facelift can’t do
A facelift, however, will not stop the aging process it can’t change your fundamental appearance either.
Any minimally invasive rejuvenation treatments can’t achieve the same results and a facelift can only be done surgically. On the other hand, any rejuvenation treatments may help to delay the time it becomes appropriate to have a facelift and will even complement the results of the procedure.
Top facelift surgeon in Charlotte NC and what to expect
Facelift surgeon in Charlotte NC says when the procedure is finished, the doctor will prescribe you pain medication. It is normal that you may have some discomfort, pain, swelling, or bruising. The doctor will advise you on when it will be ok to take off any drains or dressings and when you should make an appointment to follow up with them.
It will usually take several months for your skin to feel normal. But, you will start to see a difference in how you look once the swelling from the surgery goes down.
Charlotte’s most experienced facial plastic surgeon recommends that you should wait for about two weeks before you resume any of your normal daily activities. If you are looking to start any activity that is more physical, like exercising, you should wait for around four weeks.
Sometimes, you may not get the results that you wanted to see from the first procedure, results can’t be guaranteed. An additional facelift or other surgical procedures may be necessary. Contact Dr. Sean Freeman at Only Faces, Charlotte’s most experienced rhinoplasty surgeon and top facial plastic surgeon to schedule a consultation to find out what procedure is right for you. Call today.
