Face Lift Surgery

What is Facelift?

FACE LIFT (noun)
  The noun FACE LIFT has 2 senses:
1. plastic surgery to remove wrinkles and other signs of aging from your face; an incision is made near the hair line and skin is pulled back and excess tissue is excised
2. a renovation that improves the outward appearance (as of a building) but usually does not involve major changes


Face Lift Surgery

Lace Lifts, also known as Rhytidoplasty

Facial surgery can dramatically reduce wrinkles and help to rejuvenate your appearance. You may be considering a facelift due to ageing wrinkles, jowls or a general saggy appearance to the skin on the face and neck. A facelift can help with these. After surgery, the face is smoother and more youthful looking.

There are a wide variety of options. We offer either a "mini facelift" or a "full facelift" depending on your requirements. Facial surgery can be combined with blepharoplasty to tackle eye bags or lids, a brow lift or neck lift for a tailor-made result. Your surgeon can advise on what approach is right for you.


Recovering from a facelift

You can take over-the-counter painkillers such as paracetamol or ibuprofen if you need them. Don't take aspirin as it can cause increased bleeding. Always read the patient information leaflet that comes with the medicine.

You will have some swelling. Applying a cold compress, such as ice or a bag of frozen peas wrapped in a towel, can help to reduce the swelling and bruising. Don't apply ice directly to your skin as it can damage it.

Most people can return to work after about two weeks.

To help your recovery:

keep your head up for a couple of days to reduce swelling
don't do any vigorous activity for at least two weeks
don't have a sauna or a massage for at least two weeks
don't expose your face to the sun for six weeks
What are the risks?

Facelift surgery is commonly performed and generally safe. However, in order to make an informed decision and give your consent, you need to be aware of the possible side-effects and the risk of complications.

Side-effects

These are the unwanted but mostly temporary effects you may get after having this procedure.

Side-effects of facelift surgery include:

pain, swelling and bruising - this can last up to a month
scarring - this usually fades, but won't completely disappear
raised hairline in front of, and behind, your ears - in men, your beard may lie closer to your ear and you might need to shave differently
Complications

This is when problems occur during or after the operation. Most people are not affected. The possible complications of any operation include an unexpected reaction to the anaesthetic, excessive bleeding, infection, or developing a blood clot, usually in a vein in the leg (deep vein thrombosis, DVT). Antibiotics may be needed to help prevent infection.

Complications of a facelift can also include:

bleeding under your skin (haematoma) - this may need another operation to stop the bleeding and drain the area
damage to facial nerves - this can cause numbness and muscle weakness in your face
hair loss around your scars
unusually red or raised scars - these can take a long time to heal
There is a risk your face may be uneven afterwards and you might need another operation to correct this.

It's possible that you may not be completely happy with your appearance after the operation.

The exact risks are specific to you and differ for every person, so we have not included statistics here. Ask your surgeon to explain how these risks apply to you.