Face lifting
Introduction
A rhytidectomy, best known as a face lift is a kind of cosmetic surgery that helps older patients to look less tired and wrinkled. The first facelifts were performed around 1912, and the surgery has advanced far beyond what it was at the time of its inception. Nowadays 80% of the original indications for facelifting are no more good, which means that 80% of the face liftings are obsolete with introduction of the FAMI™ (see the FAM™I chapter).
Frequency of Surgery
How often you have the surgery usually depends on your age. As the Face Lift Guide points out, if you are over 60 years of age, you should have a follow-up surgery about two years after your first. Avoid having it done too often, as it could permanently damage your face, as we have seen in many cases of celebrities whose surgery has actually made them look older than their actual age.
Why We Age
Overtime, the skin loses two main ingredients–collagen and elastin–which ensure the smoothness and elasticity of the skin. These ingredients are not replenished in sufficient quantities, after a certain age, to maintain the beauty of the skin that characterizes youth. For this reason you see the following symptoms in people who have gotten older: Wrinkles; face lines; double chin; sagging cheeks; and flabby neck, just to name a few. These can be corrected–at least temporarily–using both surgical and non-surgical face lifting procedures, as the Face Lift Guide points out.
How The Procedure is Done
In a face-lift operation, the doctor makes a number of incisions along the hairline and the ears or chin, depending on the surgery type that is employed. He then separates the skin and tissues carefully and gently, stretching and lifting the skin, removing the excess skin and fat.
Non-Surgical Techniques
There are non-surgical methods, without a scalpel, that are less invasive and far less painful. Some do not require as much recovery time as the standard procedures. Should the patient choose the less painful and bloodless technique? Ask the Drs Amar! They will explain you non-surgical methods as the FAMI™ technique (see the FAM™I chapter).
Risks
A plastic surgeon is ethically bound to warn you of any risks, but you as a patient still has the responsibility to ask the right questions. Educate yourself prior to your pre-briefing session. Read magazines and websites that will inform you of some of the risks to be aware of–such as scarring, bleeding, infection, anesthesia complications, facial asymmetry–which means uneven face–and fat necrosis, in which fat deep within the skin dies, as well as skin loss.
Preparation for Surgery
In the postoperative phase, you should quit taking aspirin, other antiinflammatory drugs, and herbal supplements herbal supplements as these may promote excessive bleeding and require blood transfusions. Also, you must quit smoking well before the day of the operation.
The plastic surgeon may also ask you for a complete work-up, which include lab tests to determine your state of health. He may also instruct you to adjust the dosing on certain medications you may be taking.
In this prebriefing session, you can also expect to be told where your surgery will take place: at the Cadogan which is an outpatient surgical center. If you are an outpatient, it is best to have a person drive you to and from the surgery session, and to stay with you the night immediately following the operation.