Dr Steve Merten from Pure Aesthetics, Cosmetic Plastic Surgery discusses Face & Neck Lift

Necklift

The earliest signs of the ageing face appear in the neck. The platysma muscle (you can see this in the mirror if you clench your teeth hard) begins to lose tone and stretch. Eventually, thick muscle bands formed by the separated edges of these muscles are visible. Over time, both the skin and fat of the neck become looser and obscure the natural lines that separate the chin from the neck. In addition, loose skin and fat that once sat over the mid facial area begins to accumulate on the lower jaw line (jowls).

A necklift serves to address these anatomic changes. Incisions are made under the chin and in front of and possibly also behind the ears. These allow direct access to the fat and overlying platysma muscle. Using a combination of liposuction to remove fat and double breasting sutures to repair and tighten the muscle, a youthful contour of the neck can be restored. Excess skin is removed but care is taken not to to overtighten the skin, which can lead to unnatural crease lines in the lower face.

The procedure is usually performed as day case or an overnight stay. You will be required to wear facial compression garments for one week, day and night, and a further two weeks at night, to minimise swelling and bruising.

You can be back to light work as early as 2 weeks following the procedure.

Facelift

The ageing of the face occurs in a similar way to the neck and varies considerably from person to person. Early stages of mid-facial ageing are a hollowing out of the cheeks with accumulation of fat in the lower third of the face. The shape of the face changes from a more youthful oval shape to a more square (or harsher) shape. The structures responsible for this are the “SMAS” – a strong ligamentous structure that supports the soft tissue of the face; and the malar fat pad. The surgical approach to the face is made by an incision in front of and sometimes also behind the ears. Correction of ageing is performed using either a SMAS excision or SMAS tightening procedure and the ligaments that support the mid face and malar fat pad are tightened. Once again, loose skin is removed and care is taken to avoid removing excessive skin to avoid an unnatural appearance of the face. These more advanced techniques of facelifting provide both a more long lasting and more natural looking result. Newer techniques of short and medium scar facelifts are used to avoid putting a scar into the hairline and can be suitable for some patients with moderate skin excess.

The procedure is most commonly performed in conjunction with a necklift and usually requires an overnight stay. You will be required to wear facial compression garments for one week day and night and a further two weeks at night to minimise swelling and bruising.

You can be back to light work as early as 2 weeks following the procedure.