Face Lift: An Ageless Medical Procedure

A face lift is medical surgery that removes excessive facial skin and repositions saggy facial tissues. Contrary to what most people think, this surgical procedure has been performed for over a hundred years, but in the early years, it was only done by cutting out small amounts of skin near the patient's hairlines and ears to tighten the skin. This procedure is usually performed by plastic surgeons and is also referred to as “rhytidectomy”, “facialplasty” or “rhytidoplasty”. Face lifts are often performed on aging people to bring back their skin's elasticity, remove muscle tone and fat on the face, and look youthful again. Many patients find face lifts generally satisfying and the results can last up to 10 years.

Face lift surgery may take from two to six hours, and is usually done as an outpatient procedure, although some face lift patients require a few days of hospitalization after the procedure. The patient is sedated with local or general anesthetics so they don’t feel pain during surgery. The procedure begins with the surgeon making an incision along the hairline that continues down to the front edge of the ear, around the earlobe, back up behind the ear, and then back into the hairline. The surgeon does the same with the other side of the face. Afterwards, the surgeon separates the facial skin from the underlying tissue, at the same time removing fat from the cheeks and in the neck area. The surgeon then tightens the muscle and tissue bands that run up from behind the neck, below the chin and from the shoulder. After the surgeon trims the extra skin from the edges of the original incision, the skin is stretched back in place and the incision is sealed with stitches.

After a face lift, a patient will experience facial bruising and swelling, which is generally normal. When these effects subside, the patient will see a noticeable change in their face and neck contour, as well as reduced skin wrinkles.

Although the mortality rate from face lift surgery is low, there are still risks and abnormal effects that a patient can experience after a face lift, such as hematoma, which is a kind of swelling that affects one part of the face but not the other. Nerve damage can also occur, with the patient not being able to raise an eyebrow or have limited sensation in the earlobe. People with medical conditions such as lung problems and heart disease are also advised to consult their physician before undergoing face lifts.