Facelift

What Is A Facelift or Necklift?

A facelift (or rhytidectomy) is a surgical procedure designed to reduced the aging appearance of the face. There are several types of facelift procedures and all of them have different risks and benefits. Many surgeons advertise many types of minimally invasive or “quick and easy” facelift procedures. You may have seen these advertised as the Thread Lift, Contour Lift, the “Lifestyle” lift, the mini-facelift, the “lunch hour” facelift, etc. The names of these procedures sound attractive to patients who want great results with no recovery. Although the recovery may be lessened, so is the result. Typically a facelift and necklift are performed simultaneously however occasionally a necklift may be performed in isolation.

Dr. Gonyon recommends that you thoroughly research the different types of facelift procedures when considering this type of surgery. Dr. Gonyon performs several types of facelift including a deep-plane facelift. The type of procedure is tailored to meet your goals for improvement, recovery, and result. Many patients will elect to have a deep plane facelift with Dr. Gonyon. He feels that this provides you with the best result that is long lasting and natural appearing. You will see many surgeons advertise their versions of a facelift procedure however, after reading the rest of their article, you will have a better understanding of why all of these procedures are merely a comprise between results and “downtime.” Although the “quick and easy” facelifts have a reduced recovery time, they have less result, are less enduring, and are prone to require touch-ups or revisions.

What Is A Deep Plane Facelift?

Most surgeons who perform facelift procedures, including plastic surgeons as well as other physicians who try to perform cosmetic surgery, perform a skin lifting procedure. The reason that this type of procedure is the most common procedure is because the anatomy is simple and most surgeons, including those not formally trained in plastic surgery, can perform this operation with relative safety. Few surgeons have the formal training to perform a deep-plane facelift. After completing a full 6 year fellowship in Plastic Surgery at Duke University Medical Center, Dr. Gonyon completed an additional one-year fellowship to study aesthetic surgery, including the deep-plane facelift, at the Dallas Texas Southwestern Medical Hospital. This was not a weekend course or a DVD course but a dedicated year to learning the art of the facelift procedure.

To patients, all facelift procedures may look the same because the incisions and scars are in the same location. However, after seeing multiple types of facelift procedures performed by several surgeons, it is Dr. Gonyon’s opinion that the deep-plane facelift provides the best, longest lasting, and most natural result.

As you age the components of the face will change such as the skin, fat, muscles, and bony structure. To varying degrees, the simple facelift procedures merely excise some skin in front of the ear and pull the face skin upward. The advantage of this procedure is simplicity. Some surgeons perform this type of lift under local anesthesia in the office. The advantage is that patients recover in a few days. The disadvantage of this type of procedure is that the results are great for a few months but then decline. Relying on skin, which is already weak and sagging from age, to hold up the entire cheek and face skin, is prone to failure. Patients often ask how long a facelift will last, however, no surgeon should tell you that a simple skin lift will last for years, certainly not 10 years. Although the initial “downtime” is minimal you are more likely to need this performed again or need “touch ups.” This is repeat business for the surgeon and ultimately increased expense for you in the long run. However, for some patients this may meet their goal of a modest improvement with minimal recovery.

A deep-plane facelift, lifts all of the structural components of the face during one operation. The deep layer of the face, the SMAS layer, is the strong connective tissue layer that supports the facial muscles, fat pad of the cheek, and the overlying skin. By lifting the structural components of the face, the skin of your face is supported by the strong underlying connective tissue. Skin only facelifts require your weak and aging skin to support all of the weight of your facial soft tissues. Few surgeons perform the deep-plane facelift because of the increased difficulty in performing this procedure and the requirement of a more intimate knowledge of facial anatomy. Dr. Gonyon has spent additional time and training to learn this technique from the surgeon that he considers to be the best facelift surgeon in America.

What Are The Advantages of The Deep-Plane Facelift?

Because the deep plane facelift allows the strong SMAS layer to support the overlying skin, the deep-plane facelift has several advantages over a skin lift. The deep plane has long lasting results. Although the quality of an individual’s tissues will vary, many patients have an improved appearance well beyond 10 years. Also, because the skin is supported by the underlying connective tissue, the face does not have a “pulled appearance.” One of the main concerns for patients is that it will be obvious that they had a facelift. The skin lifting procedures often result in a stretched or “wind swepted” appearance and you can tell from a long distance away that they have had a facelift. The deep plane facelift produces are more harmonious appearance but without the obvious signs of a facelift.

What Are The Disadvantages of The Deep-Plane Facelift?

The main disadvantage of the deep plane lift is finding a surgeon who knows how to perform this procedure and the longer recovery from this procedure. The skin lifting procedures often advertise a recovery of one week or less. In some cases this is true however the results may also be short lived. The deep plane lift requires 3 to 4 weeks of recovery due to lifting the SMAS layer of the face. You will be swollen during this period, however, once the swelling resolves the result is a better facelift with longer lasting results.

What is the right facelift procedure for me?

During your consultation with Dr. Gonyon, he will discuss with you what your goals are for improvement and then recommend the appropriate procedure to provide the type of result you are looking for. For some patients, the correct facelift procedure will be a mini-facelift that has minimal downtime but still provides a good result. Some patients will need a more aggressive deep-plane facelift to meet their goal for improvement. Dr. Gonyon will also discuss other areas of the face such as the brow, eyelids, lips, and cheeks and how to obtain a harmonious result by treating the entire face. Some of the procedures that Dr. Gonyon performs for facial rejuvenation include:

• Deep-plane facelift
• SMAS placation facelift
• Mini-facelift
• Necklift
• Browlift
• Autologous fat injection (using your own fat to sculpt and rejuvenate the face)
• Pro-fractional Laser skin resurfacing
• Skin-Tyte Infrared skin tightening
• Botox
• Soft tissue fillers including Restylane, Juvederm, Sculptra, and Hyalform