Indications
For whom is the face lift intended?
The face and neck lift concerns healthy men and women from 45-50 years old who have a sagging of the oval of the face and neck.
The facelift can correct the sagging of the face and neck by repositioning the tissues and especially by respecting the personality of each face, a guarantee of a natural result.
Why do a facelift and neck lift?
The face and neck are the parts of our body most often uncovered and that we offer in the sight of others. They are like us the victim of time which causes a looseness of the tissues with disgraceful thickening of the features. This slackening of the skin is aggravated by the gradual melting of facial fat appearing towards forties. It is enough to convince oneself to look at the smooth and well-filled face of people who are doing a little too well.
Over time, there is a gap between the intellectual dynamism and the tired and marked image of the face.
Thanks to the facelift our face is less marked and more in phase with the image that we want to see in the mirror and offer to others.
What is the purpose of the facelift?
Cervico-facial lifting (from English lift = elevate, raise) is a procedure to “naturally” lift the skin and the subcutaneous tissues of the face that have become worn down over time.
It permit to correct the marks of time gradually appeared on the different areas of the face: the neck, the oval of the face to the temples.
What are the signs of aging of a face?
At the level of the neck:
There may be excess skin forming a vertical fold under the chin up to the aspect of pelican neck. It can be associated with baleen or vertical ropes, ranging from the chin to the clavicles, resulting in a double vertical fold space of 3 to 4 cm.
These two folds are due to the anterior edges of the neck muscles of the neck which although connected by aponevrose, are stretched forward because of the release of this aponevrose. This is particularly clear if the patient is asked to extend the neck.
How to treat the sagging tissues under the chin and the cords of the neck?
Their treatment consists, by a small incision of 4 cm placed under the chin and thus almost invisible, to suture the anterior edges of these muscles to remake a solid cervical strap.
Botox also allows injections against these cords to mitigate and maintain the result of the operation.
In case of excess skin of the entire neck with appearance of more or less significant wrinkles the face lift will correct the sagging and folds related to excess skin. But wrinkles will persist because the surface treatments (laser or deep peels) at the neck are inefficient or even dangerous (scar bridles).
At the level of the face:
The particularity of the skin of the cheek is that it is mobile on the underlying musculo-aponeurotic planes. Moreover it moves according to the gravity and the position of the face.
When standing, it tends to descend downwards or its excess causes deformation of the line of the oval of the face. It appears then jowls because the skin abuts on a zone of skin fixed on the border between the cheek and the chin.
Indeed, at the level of the lips and the chin, the skin is stuck to the muscles and can not slip. The skin of the cheek thus accumulates on the line of fixation of the skin of the lips(naso-genial folds and lower genius labio) realizing the naso-genial rim at the level of the upper lip and the fold of bitterness at the level of the lower lip. In the recumbent position, the skin of the cheek slips backwards, making the front of the face perfect with, however, a cutaneous rim in front of the ear.
Effect of the facelift
What is the effect of the facelift?
The re-tensioning of the skin and the fatty and muscular tissues will reposition the tissues in a natural way adapted to the anatomical particularities of each face.
It is indeed necessary to avoid this aspect “too much shot” or especially “poorly shot”. This gives a frozen and unnatural appearance to the face at rest and during expressions.
How is the oval of the face redesigned?
The oval will redraw itself and will find a nice line. The great progress of the past 15 years has been the demonstration of the need to retighten not only the skin but also, and above all, subcutaneous musculo-aponevrotic tissues (SMAS).
Indeed the traction on the skin is not stable in time, except for the thick skin.
So some surgeons tend a little too much skin giving the patient this aspect too “pulls” so typical and ugly.
On the other hand traction on the very strong musculo-aponeurotic tissues makes it possible to raise the skin very effectively and stable over time.
The skin will then simply rest without traction, giving a perfectly natural look to the face. Instead of having this aspect frozen and “lift”, we find the face that we had a few years ago.
What are the associated techniques?
Lipofilling consists of re-injecting the patient’s own fat, after centrifugation (Coleman’s technique), in order to restore the volumes. Regal cheeks or cheekbones are powerful stigmata of youth.
Sometimes, there is excess fat in the neck (double chin) and cheeks. This may require localized lipoaspiration to refine the result.
The cutaneous folds related to the excess skin will disappear with the tensioning of the skin. But skin wrinkles can persist because they are “folds” of the skin, real small scars of time that only a surface treatment will be able to improve.
The best of these treatments is the peeling either chemical by acids (acetic, phenols…) or physical by laser.
These surface treatments are done under local or general anesthesia. They can be practiced at the same time as a facelift.
This is especially true for lip wrinkles where the facelift is totally ineffective. Only the treatment of the skin can hope to improve these small vertical wrinkles, knowing that if the small ones disappear, the deep ones will be attenuated. Then, the correction of these wrinkles can be effectuated with the injections of fillers type hyaluronic acid.
Is it possible to associate other operations during the lifting
For to optimize the facial rejuvenation and depending of it ageing, frequently resort to combine the operation of eyelids (blepharoplasty) or proportioned reinjection of fat.
In the following, the result of the operation can be entertain and protract due to the injections of hyaluronic acid, of botox and skin care type peelings.
How is the operation going?
The facelift takes place under sedative anesthesia (as for colonoscopy) or general anesthesia according to the wish of the patient, the associated operations and the medical possibilities.
Before and after lifting
The consultation of the facelift
The consultation with Doctor Sabatier in Nice will permit to analyze your motivations and your desires of correction witch as for you are the personal approach.
The clinical examination of your face and of your neck will permit to see the problem which deranges. It will be indicated the correction which can be prescribed, taking into account the quality of your skin and the excess of the skin to remove.
He will take the knowing about your medical history for to check search the precautions or the absence of an operative contraindication. You will see with him the various anesthetic and operative modalities. No aspirin-containing medication should be taken within 30 days of the surgery.
What are the post-operative consequences after lifting?
The return home is the day after the operation which demands the convalescence from 10 to 15 days for to go back to social and professional activities.
Depending on your state and particularly of your treatments, the ecchymosis can appear and edema of the oval of the face and neck.
The scars around ear and in the hairs are blush at first and then very fine and unobservable.
What are the disadvantages?
The tension is observed during first days in the face as well as the sensation of sleepy state progressively passes off. Sometimes the hematoma after operation can appear requiring its drainage.
And about the anesthesia?
The choice between different techniques of anesthesia will be the subject of discussion by and among You and the surgeon.
The surgery of cervico-facial facelift and the lifting cervico-facio-temporal lifting the most frequently is realized under the total anesthesia.
Like this, the lifting is performed under the total anesthesia for the purpose to fail what going on and awake after the finished operation without any apprehension.
It’s also possible to have recourse to the easier anesthesia. This anesthesia is not very deeper and given with products of quickly elimination, permitting the ambulatory hospitalization of the short time.
These kinds of anesthesia require preoperative blood and cardiac examination making in conformity with the prescriptions.
The anesthesiologist will be seen for the consultation at the latest 48 hours before the intervention.
Rates
How much does it cost?
Indicated rates include clinic fees, anesthetist fees and surgeon fees.
For information purposes the cost of a facelift with a night in the clinic is from 3800 euros incl. VAT.
In case of associated operations the cost will be specified during the consultation.
For more information about the the facelift consult the sheet of the French Society of Plastic and Aesthetic Surgery.