The concept of a facelift for many patients, initially, seems extreme. Prospective patients often have a vision of being swollen and bruised for weeks over their entire face. Such thoughts have driven some patients to other less or minimally-invasive procedures which are often inappropriate for their facial aging problem. They may have been less invasive and may have cost less, but the end result may have also been disappointing.
Some potential patients suffer two fundamental misconceptions about facelifts…what they are and what the recovery may be. Over half of the facelifts that I do are done in isolation without any other facial procedures. Some patients are only concerned about the appearance of their neck and are not concerned about their eyes, for example. If that is only what concerns the patient, then that is the only issue that needs to be addressed.
An isolated facelift, or a neck-jowl lift, causes none of the issues that many patients fear. There would be no swelling or bruising around the eyes. The neck and jowl line will have some mild swelling and bruising…but it will be painless as the neck and jowl skin are numb for several months after surgery anyway. The only discomfort will be around the ears where the incisions are placed. The ears will be tender for a week or two as these incisions heal. While I use a head dressing that wraps around the neck for the first night….with surgical drains… all of this gets removed the following morning. In limited facelifts, there is no further dressing needed. In full facelifts, a small neck strap is used for a few more days. Showering and washing one’s hair can be done the next morning. There is no concern about getting the incision lines wet. One can style and blow-dry their hair as they wish. Even with some mild swelling and bruising the neck and jowl already look remarkably improved.
Patient fears about facelift surgery are often unfounded. As an Indianapolis facelift surgeon, I find taht when it is done as the only facial procedure, a facelift is much easier to go through than most envision. An improved understanding of a facelift and its recovery is helpful for patients to make better decisions and ensure a good return on their investment.
Dr. Barry Eppley
Indianapolis, Indiana