The Features of a Facelift

Women and men who wish to combat the signs of aging often consider procedures such as BOTOX® Cosmetic, dermal fillers, or facial plastic surgery. In Los Angeles, I see many patients who are unsure about their options. One procedure that gets a lot of attention – and that offers several variations – is the facelift. Here is an overview of the facelift techniques commonly used by surgeons today.

• SMAS Facelift: The SMAS (superficial musculo-aponeurotic system) facelift is designed to lift the deep tissues of the face. This can be performed by using either the lateral SMASectomy (my personal favorite), or a more traditional SMAS surgery. The SMAS technique is so often used because it provides more mid-face and nasolabial correction. It also allows the cheeks to become more accentuated.
• Short Scar Facelift: This method derives its name from the nature of the procedure. The incision can be made either in front or behind the ear. Having the incision made behind the ear will provide more of a lift to the neck, and having the incision in front of the ear will lift the face more. A short scar facelift may provide optimal results for patients who do not need a major lift of the neck and who do not have a significant amount of excess facial skin. Because this technique uses smaller incisions than other facelift methods, patients often experience minimal scarring.

While these are not the only facelift techniques that are performed, they are the most “mainstream” techniques out there. To find out which method will give you optimal results, be sure to talk with your surgeon.

Tags: facial plastic surgery los angeles

This entry was posted on Wednesday, September 22nd, 2010 at 9:56 pm and is filed under Facial Cosmetic Surgery. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.