Facelift – When and Why

As you age, two major things happen to cause your face to have a more aged appearance. Collagen and elastin fibers within your skin start to degrade causing loss of skin elasticity. Also, you lose fat volume in the face’s natural fat pads over the cheek and other bony prominences, causing a more hollowed appearance and worsening skin sag. Sagging skin and wrinkles tend to add years onto a person’s visage. This is one of the reasons why many people opt for cosmetic facial surgery. Today, a popular method of dealing with facial aging is a facelift.

A facelift is a surgical procedure to remove excess skin as well as tighten muscle and underlying tissue. Not only do facelifts target the face itself, they are also invaluable when it comes to beautifying the neck area by tightening saggy skin and removing double chins.

Facelifts are of various types. They range from a mini-facelift (for those individuals who have few wrinkles and mild skin laxity) to the more advanced full facelift which requires extensive surgery. Overall, the best candidates for full facelifts are people who are over 50 years old, as that is when the signs of aging become more apparent. Even if you are younger and feel that your face just does not seem to have its same youthful appeal that it had before, then having a mini-facelift is something to consider.

At Beverly Hills Profiles, Drs. Solieman and Litner frequently perform their proprietary Hybrid LiftTM which entails a full facelift done through a short incision around the ears combined with facial fat transfer to best treat all of the signs of facial aging while minimizing recovery and visible incisions.

One of the major benefits of facelifts is that they have a tendency to last a very long time. While other methods may give you a youthful appearance for a year or two, a facelift performed by a qualified surgeon can rejuvenate your skin and turn back the clock by up to ten years!

Whether you choose a facelift or any other procedure, it is crucial that you consult an experienced cosmetic surgeon to determine which surgery will be best for you before you decide on anything. With their experience and insight, surgeons are in the best position to advise you as to which procedure will be the most effective one for your particular case.

Below, you will find some of the non-surgical alternatives that are commonly used before it’s time for a facelift. They cannot replace what a facelift can do for you, but these can be useful temporizing treatments for those who feel they are not quite ready to consider a facelift. Each of them has their pros and cons which is something you should discuss with your surgeon before making a decision.

• Anti-Wrinkle Injection: Anti-Wrinkle Injection is a purified protein which is injected directly into the muscles of the face. It relaxes the muscles in a particular region of the face and reduces existing wrinkles while preventing new wrinkles from forming. It is a temporary solution and lasts for about three to four months.
• Juvederm: This facial filler is made of hyaluronic acid which, along with collagen is one of the main natural building blocks of the skin. Juvederm doesn’t treat active wrinkles like Anti-Wrinkle Injection does. Instead, Juvederm works by attracting water molecules and plumping areas of the face that have lost volume such as the under eye and cheek areas, and the folds around your mouth. While it is injected directly into the face like Anti-Wrinkle Injection, its effects last between six to nine months. You can read more about Juvederm by clicking here.
• Other Wrinkle Fillers: There are various facial fillers available, some of which we prefer more than others for safety or reliability reasons. One relatively recent newcomer that has become more popular is called Voluma. Voluma is similar to Juvederm but its molecules are more densely cross-linked, causing it to be thicker and more dense. For this reason, it lasts longer. Voluma is more appropriate for use in deep tissues such as the cheek area, where it can last for up to two years. For more information about wrinkle fillers, please visit our page here.

If you are someone who has been thinking about getting a facelift or any other anti-aging procedure, Beverly Hills Profiles just might be the place you are looking for. The doctors here would be happy to meet you and address your concerns to come up with a plan that will work best for your needs. Please contact their office to schedule a consultation.