South Florida Face Lift

South Florida Face Lift - Before and After Interactive Gallery

Our face is our most visible feature, one that through expression and appearance conveys what and how we feel. Facial aging includes a loss of skin elasticity and firmness, sagging tissue, and wrinkles.  These visible signs of aging can greatly impact how we feel about ourselves and how others see us.  Even as a person who is energetic and excited about life, can appear tired and sad due to aging in the mid face, jaw line and neck.  The loss of youthful contours in these areas is due to a variety of factors including heredity, gravity, environment conditions, and stress.

If you are bothered by the signs of aging in your face, a facelift may be right for you. In general, a facelift corrects sagging facial skin muscles, removes excess fat, and restored firmness to create a more youthful, rested, and vibrant appearance.

A facelift, technically known as ryhtidectomy, is a surgical procedure to improve visible signs of aging in the face and neck. Sagging in the mid face can create a deep crease below the lower eyelid (called a tear through) and between the nose and mouth (nasalabial fold) that may make you appear tired and sad.  Fat that has fallen or is displaced and loss of muscle tone in the lower face make create jowls (a jaw line that sags into the neck). Loose skin and excess fatty deposits under the chin and jaw can make even a person of normal weight appear to have a "double chin."

A facelift is designed to correct all of these aging features, restoring a more youthful, rested appearance with uplifted contours and improves tone in facial skin and underlying muscle. Where desired improvement can be isolated to the mid facial region and where excess skin is less a factor, a limited incision lift may be an alternative to a traditional face lift.  As a restorative surgery, a facelift does not change your fundamental appearance and cannot stop the aging process.  Although, you will continue to age naturally, aging will progress from the more youthful version of yourself that has been restored by a facelift.  Rejuvenation procedure typically performed in conjunction with a facelift or brow lift, to correct sagging or deeply furrowed brow, and eyelid surgery to rejuvenate aging eyes.

A facelift is best performed on adult men and women who feel that their outward facial aging no longer reflects the youth and vigor they feel physically and emotionally.  Good candidates are:

• Healthy individuals who do not have a life-treating illness or medical conditions that can impair healing
• Non-Smokers
• Individuals with a positive outlook and specific, but realistic goals in mind for improvement of their appearance

A face lift is a highly individualized procedure. Dr. Yalamanchi will evaluate your skin, muscle and bone structure and the specific conditions that contribute to your aging appearance. These factors are the most significant considerations in determining the appropriate technique or combination of procedure to best achieve your realistic goals. A facelift can only be performed surgically; non-surgical rejuvenation treatments cannot achieve the same results, but may help delay the time at which a facelift becomes appropriate. Most patients are reassured to know that a facelift will not change their basic appearance, but will restore it to a younger version of itself that will then continue to age naturally over time.

A traditional facelift restores the mid face, jowls and neck, allowing excess skin to be removed.  When improvement is desired in the mid face region, along an area where excess skin is less a factor, limited incision techniques may be an alternative to a traditional facelift. Your goals, anatomy, and Dr. Yalamanchi‘s surgical judgment are all factors in determining the best approach to your individual case.

A procedure that may further enhance the outcome of a facelift may include: facial implants or soft tissue augmentation to re-contour the facial structure, and resurfacing techniques to improve the tone and texture of the facial skin. Wrinkle reduction by injection (Botox) may be recommended prior to your procedure (to help underlying muscle fully relax before repositioning and tightening) or after, to help maintain results.)

Facelift incisions often begin in the hairline at the temples; continue around the ear and in the lower scalp. Fat may be sculpted or redistributed from the face, jowls and neck, and underlying tissue is repositioned.  The skin is re-draped over the uplifted contours and excess skin is trimmed away.  A second incision under the chin, maybe necessary to further improve an aging neck.  The sutures or skin adhesives close the incisions.

An alternative to a traditional facelift uses shortened incisions at the temples, within the lower eyelids or under the upper lip. An endoscope, or surgical telescope, may help to reposition tissues and elevate mid facial muscles. Skin resurfacing techniques may be performed in conjunction with the surgery or as a separate procedure to improve skin tone and texture.

Once healed, the incision lines from a facelift are well concealed within the hairline and in the natural contours of the face and the ear.  The visible improvements of a facelift appear, as well as swelling and bruising subsides. Your final result should not only be restoring a more youthful and rested appearance, but also help you feel more confident about yourself!

Following Surgery

Once your procedure is completed, a bandage will gently be placed around your face to minimize swelling and bruising. A thin tube may be present to drain any excess blood that may collect under the skin.  Before being released, you and an accompanying family member, friend or caregiver will be given specific instructions that may include:

• How to care for the surgical site
• Medications to apply or take orally to aid healing and reduce the potential for an infection
• Specific concerns to look for at the surgical site or in overall health
• When to follow up with Dr. Yalamanchi after your South Florida Face Lift

Initial healing will include swelling, and may include numbness and discomfort that can be controlled with medication. Your skin will likely look bruised or discolored.  In addition, facial movements maybe temporarily restricted.  These are common conditions.

Dr. Yalamanchi will instruct you to keep your head elevated at all times until swelling has subsided. You will be provided specific post-operative instructions including cleansing of your face and hair.  Follow all instructions carefully; this is essential to the success of your outcome. A return to light, normal activity is usually possible within a few days of surgery.

For the most part, facelift incisions are well healed within a week. You will be ready to return to work and to normal activity sometime between 2 to 4 weeks.  Cosmetics can usually camouflage the bruising that remains.

Healing will continue for at least several more weeks, as swelling resolves and incision lines continue to improve. You must practice diligent sun protection, until the healing process is fully complete. Continue to follow the instructions and attend follow-up visits as scheduled.

Results and Outlook:

It may take several months for swelling to fully dissipate and up to 6 months for incision lines to mature. Life-long sun protection will help to maintain your rejuvenated appearance by minimizing photo-aging or sun damage. In addition, a healthy lifestyle will also help extend the results of your rejuvenated, more youthful appearance. Most patients find that the benefits of their initial facelift results are long lasting, even as they continue to age.