Text Us Text to Contact Us

Facelift Beverly Hills

Who is a facelift for? Do I need one?

A facelift, also known as a rhytidectomy, is a procedure intended to reverse signs of facial aging. As we become older, there are changes in the laxity and volume of different areas of our face. Some of these changes are very characteristic of aging such as jowls hanging in the lower cheeks, looseness in the skin of the neck, flattening of the cheek bones, hollowing of the eyes, and bulging in the lower eyelids.

These are just a few of the changes that occur. A facelift will help to rejuvenate these tissues by tightening and re-suspending sagging tissues as well as helping to re-volumize areas that have become loose and empty.

How is a face lift performed?

A facelift is generally performed by placing incisions that are hidden for from easy view and accessing the deeper tissues in the face. These tissues are then tightened with sutures in order to reverse the sagging that occurs with aging. This is a simplified version of what occurs. However there are many different techniques that all came to lift sagging facial tissues. You will see many advocates for different techniques and they will claim that their technique is the best technique for face lifting. However ultimately surgeon experience and what they are able to achieve with their own technique is the most important factor for a successful outcome.

Face Lift Techniques

There are several main techniques that are used to lift the facial tissues and even subcategories that may lift certain parts of the face. All of these can be great techniques in the right hands and for the right patient. Generally, a competent facial surgeon should have several techniques at their disposal in case the patient is not an ideal candidate for a particular technique.

Modern face lift technique generally refers to tightening or manipulation of a deep layer of the face called the SMAS. Simply tightening the skin is almost never a good option to give long term results.

The most common facial tightening procedures differentiate between simple tightening of the SMAS layer (SMAS tightening Facelift) and actually going under this special layer to release certain ligaments to give an even further lift (Deep Plane Facelift). There are variations on both of these techniques as well as the ability to add other techniques to supplement the main procedure. I do believe a Deep Plane Facelift is a more powerful face lift technique that allows the facial tissues to truly “re-drape” properly

What other procedures are used to enhance the result of a facelift?

The facelift is commonly combined with other surgical procedures such as brow lift, eyelid surgery (blepharoplasty), rhinoplasty and neck lift. However, these are technically “separate” procedures from a facelift that all help to work to rejuvenate the face entirely.

Some other techniques that can be added to the facelift to enhance the result include adding volume in certain areas to help sculpt and highlight areas of the face such as the jawline, the cheek bones, etc. The skin frequently needs to be rejuvenated secondary to years of sun exposure and damage. The skin can be repaired with various techniques such as laser resurfacing, chemical peels or even dermabrasion(sandpapering the skin!).

Liposuction with a small tube can be used to remove superficial facial fat such as in the jowls or in the jawline.

Is a facelift required when getting a neck lift?

A facelift is a rejuvenating procedure by repairing what time has done to the tissues. It is a very powerful procedure for addressing facial aging but the results can come back over time. A facelift will reverse 5 to 10 years (depending on the patient) but after surgery the aging process does continue even while the patient continues to look younger.

What will my appointment to discuss facelift be like?

A full history will be taken to assess your health to make sure you are a good candidate for facelift. Assuming that is all fine, a full facial analysis will be performed to understand the aging process for you. Frequently, aging occurs not in isolated areas of the face throughout the face but perhaps a different “rates”.

It can be disharmonious to simply rejuvenate one part of the face while allowing, for example, the eyes to have significant excess skin or brow drop. Additionally, the skin will be analyzed to see if rejuvenation had the most superficial level will also help to improve your results.

We will discuss all of these findings and you will be shown areas for improvement in the mirror. The goal is to have you completely understand the process so that you feel comfortable with the decisions being made. Of course, no procedure will be performed without your consent and understanding.

Any questions that you may have the answer to the best of my ability. And you will also be able to ask follow-up questions as needed.

About Nicholas Lahar, M.D. – Lahar Plastic Surgery

Nicholas Lahar, M.D. - Lahar Plastic Surgery

Lahar Plastic Surgery

Nicholas Lahar, MD

Plastic Surgeon located in Beverly Hills, CA

A face-lift can give you a more youthful, well-rested appearance. In the hands of a skilled surgeon like Nicholas Lahar, MD, of Lahar Plastic Surgery in Beverly Hills, California, a face-lift enhances your natural beauty and never makes you appear “overdone” or “stretched.” If you’ve been considering a face-lift but would like to know more about the procedure and anticipated results, schedule an appointment with Dr. Lahar online or by phone today.

Facelift FAQS

A facelift is a rejuvenating procedure by repairing what time has done to the tissues. It is a very powerful procedure for addressing facial aging but the results can come back over time. A facelift will reverse 5 to 10 years (depending on the patient) but after surgery the aging process does continue even while the patient continues to look younger.

Facelift is frequently an outpatient procedure or perhaps a night at an overnight care facility. Depending on the extent of surgery, you will have a small drain that is frequently removed the next day. Usually you are swollen and sometimes mildly bruised for about a week and a half to two weeks. You should be “restaurant-ready” in about that time. You will still have mild persistent swelling throughout the surgical areas for even several months but no one but you will really notice this swelling and it should not prevent you from being social. You should immediately notice a significant improvement and at two weeks, that improvement will persist but without the major post-surgical swelling. You will look fantastic! The results will continue to refine for up to a year. We provide comprehensive post-surgical care instructions, and following those guidelines can vastly improve your recovery process.

While the patients who typically receive facelift surgery tend to be a little older than the average patient for other procedures, they still tend to be quite healthy. However there are processes that can affect the results that may be seeing more frequently in this patient population. Condition such as hypertension and diabetes may affect wound healing. In particular hypertension can result in a bleeding episode under the skin that can hurt the healing tissues and results in a poor scar. Prior to any surgery, you will have a medical clearance to ensure that you are optimized for surgery and that the risks are very minimal. Another major contraindication to facelift surgery is smoking. Smoking significantly reduces the body’s ability to heal because the blood vessels are clamped down and nutrients are not able to get to the incisions to heal them. People have lost significant amounts of skin on their face after facelift surgery because of their smoking status! Clearly this is not something anyone wants to experience and smoking needs to be stopped at least a month prior to surgery and for two weeks after surgery in order to have a relatively safe facelift.

The human eye naturally sees lines on the face in certain areas such as in the contours surrounding the ear. The incisions are placed in these natural lines on the face and our brains are tricked to assume that the line or scar is just a natural transition from one part of the face into the other. In the case of facelifts, I place the incisions around the sideburns, in the crease of the ear, around the ear lobe and if necessary up and behind the ear and into the hairline. The face lift is also performed in a way that minimizes any tension on the incision so that the scar heals as a very thin line. In areas with hair, I make my incision in such a way that the hairs actually grow through the scar and help to camouflage the scars. This combination frequently allows for nearly imperceptible scars.

Because of the proximity of the surgery to important facial nerves, there is a small risk of temporary paralysis of some of the muscles of the face. It is extremely rare for this to be persistent and usually resolves in less than a month. There is also a risk of incision separation and pulling down of the ear lobe (also called pixie ear). I make every effort to avoid these problems by addressing them and protecting against them during the surgery itself.

Learn more about Facelift surgery during a personalized consultation, which you can book online or over the phone today.

Call Gallery Contact Location
Contact Us
Skip to content