Vertical Facelift

THE TYPICAL PATIENT

• Desire for a more youthful appearance in the face and focusing mostly on heavy laugh lines, sagging cheek pads, and heavy jowls.
• Desire for facial rejuvenation and return to your features of years ago with high cheek bones, well defined and smooth jaw line, soft laugh lines, thin face, less excess fat, and tighter, lifted facial features.
• Features of looking older than you are or feel. Loss of elasticity and firmness of the face.

THE PROCEDURE

• This is a more VERTICAL facelifting procedure. It is where your anatomic features require a more direct upward lift, rather than a pull from the sides, as in standard facelift.
• Anesthesia is usually a very light general and the procedure takes about two to four hours.
• The incision is a very inconspicuous location of a variable length. They are located under the eyelids and inside the mouth. Occasionally there are the standard facelift incisions inside the hairline and around the ear.
• The technique involves separating the full thickness of the facial tissues (skin, muscle and fat) away from the underlying bone, lifting, elevating and fixing this as a unit all up higher.
• Drains are used for two days. These are soft and comfortable and removed without pain.
• Dressings and a light compression garment are used for several days.
• This can be combined with other plastic surgical procedures.

THE RECOVERY

• You can go home after several hours or can stay overnight.
• You can shower on the second day after surgery.
• There is only minimal pain that is mostly gone by the second or third day and easily controlled by medications.
• Swelling is mild to moderate and peaks at two to three days then disappears rapidly over the next three weeks.
• Minimal or no bruising is the usual.
• Some grogginess is present which persists for about a week.
• Makeup can be applied as early as the third day after surgery and comfortably begin to appear in public at that time.
• You can resume many activities within the first week, and most by at least three weeks.
• The stitches are removed at seven days.
• Expect to be off of work for only three to seven days.

THE RESULT

• Beautiful, balanced and proportioned contour.
• Natural and refreshed appearance to the face.
• Lasts the rest of your life and always looks better than if you didn't do it.
• Natural and presentable appearance in the first week that just gets better over the next three to six months.

For before and after images of this procedure click here

Please call or contact the office for any further information or to schedule an appointment.