| Face
Lift:
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Face-lift or rhytidectomy is a surgical
procedure used to lift facial
tissue and make the skin look
as it was before time had its
effect on it. If you feel young
and lively, but your mirror
no longer shows you that image,
a Face-lift may be of great
help to you. Challenge the passage
of time.
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What
does Face-lift surgery do?
It
tightens the skin and lax (hypo tonic) muscles
of the face. It helps improve the youthful
appearance of mature people (about 40 years
old) that have not aged yet and that wish
to delay the aging process for personal
or professional reasons. It rejuvenates
the face of older people. The rejuvenating
effect will be more impressive if the aging
marks such as wrinkles and hanging skin
are more pronounced. It is divided in two
areas: a) Upper or temporal lift (also known
as mini-face lift or lateral brow lift):
it illuminates and refreshes the look and
can be performed as a single procedure in
young people who do not need to have their
cheeks rejuvenated. b) Mid lift: used to
correct the cheeks. Performed together with
eyelift surgery (Blepharoplasty), neck
lift surgery, and brow lift surgery, it
completely rejuvenates the face and neck.
The neck lift tightens skin and muscle that
has become loose and hanging due to aging
or hereditary family traits. It also removes
excess fat from the neck and the double
chin.
What does Face-lift surgery NOT do?
It
does not eliminate crow's feet or wrinkles
around the lips, since these wrinkles do
not appear as a result of the aging process,
but due to repeated muscle contraction.
It does not produce any changes in the area
above the eyes. In order to do that, forehead
or brow lift surgery will be necessary.
How is Blepharoplasty
performed?
The
surgeon makes the incisions along the natural
folds of the eyelids so that the resulting
scars will be disguised. On the upper eyelids,
the incision is done along the natural folds
and, on the lower eyelids; it is done just
below the eyelashes. In some cases, the
incisions extend some millimeters beyond
the corners of the eyes. Working through
these incisions, the surgeon removes the
excess fat that accumulates beneath the
skin (two lumps in each upper eyelid and
three in each lower eyelid). Apart from
this, he trims the excess skin of the bags
that give the eyes the appearance of being
'hanging'. After that, the incisions are
closed with very fine sutures. If
you have fat lumps but you do not need to
have any excess skin removed, your surgeon
may perform a transconjunctival Blepharoplasty.
In this procedure, the incisions are made
inside of the eyelids and they leave no
visible scars but, it is necessary for the
skin to be thick, firm and elastic, that
is why it is generally indicated for young
patients.
Anesthesia
Local anesthesia and
complementary sedation.
Length
of surgery
One to three hours,
according to the complexity of the case.
Hospitalization
There is no need to
be hospitalized; it is done on an outpatient
basis.
How
is a Face-lift performed?
The
surgeon makes a vertical incision from the
temples to the upper part of the ears. This
incision, which is usually made behind the
hair-growth line so that the resulting scar
will be concealed, is the one used in upper
or temporal lift surgery. In mid lift surgery
(cheeks), the same temporal incision we
just described extends further down in front
of the ears and follows their natural outline
to the back (periauricular line). By means
of this incision, the surgeon separates
the muscle and the skin from the face, he
tightens them and replaces them further
up to achieve a more youthful look. He cuts
the excess skin and muscle and sutures.
In order to rejuvenate lower areas of the
face, such as the outline of the jaw, it
is necessary to perform neck lift surgery.
In order to
perform the neck lift, the surgeon makes
an incision that has two sections: the first
one is vertical and extends behind each
ear (retroauricular), and the second one
is horizontal and extends about 2 inches
(5 cm) along the hair-growth line on the
back of the neck (mastoid). In some cases
it may be necessary to make a small incision
under the chin and/or a liposuction of the
double chin to obtain better results. By
means of these incisions, the surgeon separates
the muscle and the skin from the neck, he
tightens them and replaces them further
up to achieve a more youthful look. He cuts
the excess skin and muscle and sutures.
Anesthesia
Local anesthesia and
complementary sedation, or general anesthesia,
according to the complexity of the case.
Length
of surgery
Between 90 minutes
and 2 hours if it is partial. Between 3
and 4 hours if it is complete.
Hospitalization
No hospitalization
is required if the surgery is performed
with local anesthesia. If it was performed
with general anesthesia, you will be hospitalized
for one day or one night.
The
Results
The
scars heal very quickly and become almost
invisible after a few months. But even before
that happens, after only 2 or 6 weeks, the
results of the Blepharoplasty will be evident.
You will have a more relaxed and youthful
look for a long time. In many people, the
results are permanent.
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