What Kind of Procedures Are Performed During Facelift Operations?

A patient’s facial bone stucture, shape of their face, their facial fat distribution, their facial skin quality, their skin laxity, their excess facial skin amount, their deeper facial tissue positions are evaluated for their candidacy for a facelift surgery. As each patient has a different anatomy with individual needs, the surgery planning and surgical approach should be designed accordingly.

During facelift operations, the skin in the face and neck of the patient can be draped, meaning that the excess skin is removed and the remaining skin is positioned to be tighter. Deeper tissue stuctures in the face can also be repositioned to become tighter. Fat deposits can be removed in selected areas.

Tightening of the saggy, loose skin around the jawline, improvement in the lines around the nose and mouth, removal of the excess skin and fat tissues in the neck, chin and cheek area, repositioning of the deeper tissues in the midface to tighten them can be among the goals of a facelift operation. Also, creating more definition in facial features, providing a more youthful, rejuvenated apperance to the face in general are among the goals of a facelift operation.

Facelift operations are performed through an incision starting in the hair or hairline above and in front of the ear, in the temporal area. The incision is extended downwards in front of the ear, moving towards under the ear and then upwards behind the ear ending in the hair or hairline behind the ear. The skin and fat layer are then seperated from the underlying muscle and connective tissue as much as needed. The underlying muscle and connective tissues can be tightened with sutures if it is needed. The skin is pulled back and upwards and the excess skin is removed. Then the incision lines are closed with sutures and skin staples. Drains can be used if they are needed. Tapes are then placed on the sutures. Surgical approaches that work on deeper tissues can also be used.

Facelift operations do not target the foread, eyebrows, eyelids. Other procedures such as forehead lifts, browlifts, upper and lower blepharoplasties can be combined with facelift operations and provide great results depending on the needs of the patient. Superficial, fine lines, skin irregularities, problems in the skin quality, sun damage and similiar issues are not targeted by facelift operations alone. Alternative surgical and non-surgical treatments options are available for these issues.