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Why it's done
By Mayo Clinic staffAs you get older, your facial skin changes — sagging and becoming loose. This can make the lower part of your face appear rectangular in shape. A face-lift can give your face a more youthful heart-like shape.
You might consider a face-lift if:
- Your facial skin has become loose
- Your cheeks are sagging
- The creases below your lower eyelids and around your lower lip and chin are becoming deeper
- You have excess skin hanging from your lower jaw line (jowls)
- You've lost definition and have excess fat in your neck
- Vertical bands of skin in your neck (platysmal bands) have become visible
A face-lift isn't a treatment for superficial wrinkles, sun damage, creases around the nose and upper lip, or irregularities in skin color.
References
- Thorne CH, et al. Grabb and Smith's Plastic Surgery. 6th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Wolters Kluwer Health Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; 2007:1.
- Bailey BJ, et al. Head & Neck Surgery — Otylaryngology. 4th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; 2006:1.
- Face lift. American Society of Plastic Surgeons. http://www.plasticsurgery.org/Cosmetic-Procedures/Facelift.html. Accessed May 29, 2012.
- Facelift surgery. The American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. http://www.aafprs.org/patient/procedures/rhytidectomy.html. Accessed May 29, 2012.
- Arroyave E. Understanding Cosmetic Procedures: Surgical and Nonsurgical. Clifton Park, N.Y.: Milady; 2006:99.
- Bite U (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. July 3, 2012.
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