Facelift and Necklift

About the procedure

A Los Angeles facelift is a plastic surgery procedure that is used to correct the changes of facial aging in patients so that the face has a more youthful aesthetic appearance. As people age, characteristic changes occur in their face and neck. The middle part of the face tends to drop lower, giving a sunken appearance to the cheeks. The smile lines deepen and jowls form along the border of the mandible. In the neck, the angle between the chin and neck becomes blunted and more obtuse, and vertical bands can appear in the neck (platysmal bands). Additionally, the skin itself can have many fine wrinkles, especially around the eyes and mouth.

The Los Angeles facelift procedure is designed to reduce the large wrinkles and jowling that occurs with aging. The necklift procedure is also designed to improve the jowling in the chin, and can reduce the platysmal banding in the neck and improve the angle between the chin and neck. The facelift and necklift procedures begin by making an incision in the lateral brow hairline that extends down across the front of the ear, behind the ear, and back into the hairline behind the ear. Depending on the amount of correction that is necessary, the incision can be lengthened or shortened. After making the incision, Dr. Hirsch will lift up the skin of the face, and may elevate the layer below the skin as well. After lifting up the skin and making sure that the skin is released enough to achieve the desired level of correction, Dr. Hirsch will tighten the skin and close the incisions. Occasionally, it may be necessary to make a separate incision in the underside of the neck to tighten the neck and improve the platysmal bands. The facelift and the necklift differ in the amount of dissection that is performed in the face versus the neck- a facelift will have more dissection in the face in order to correct the facial wrinkles, which a necklift will have more dissection in the next to correct the neck jowling and banding.

After a facelift or necklift, patients are placed in a special post operative dressing that they leave in place until they are seen by Dr. Hirsch in his Sherman Oaks plastic surgery office. Some patients go home, while others remain in the hospital or in a specialized recovery center overnight. After the dressings are removed, patients may shower and wash their hair gently with regular shampoo. There usually is not significant pain after a facelift, although there may be some swelling and bruising. The bruising is usually gone after 1-2 weeks, and the swelling is significantly improved at 2-4 weeks and is minimally noticeable at 3 months, but may take up to 6-12 months to fully resolve.

For existing patients, click here to download post op instructions.

Frequently asked questions about facelifts and necklifts

I have heard that there are many types of facelifts and necklifts. Which one is the best for me?

While it is true that there are many different types of facelifts, everybody’s face is different as well. Techniques that work for some types of faces won’t work as well for other faces. In general, techniques vary in the amount of dissection done below the skin, and how (and if) dissection is carried out below the deeper layer in the face called the SMAS. At the time of your consultation, Dr. Hirsch will evaluate you and will discuss with you his preferred approach based on your appearance and symptoms.

Will the facelift and necklift correct all of my wrinkles?

The facelift and necklift procedures are designed to correct jowling and improve the angle between the neck and the chin, as well as smooth wrinkles in the cheeks and neck. The facelift generally does not improve the fine lines above the mouth and at the corners of the mouth. Approximately 75-80% of facial wrinkles are corrected by a facelift procedure.

How long will the effects of the facelift last?

The length of time that effects of the facelift and necklift last depends on many different factors. Some of them relate to the surgery and how the deeper structures of the face are treated, while other factors relate to the patient such as smoking and sun exposure. Every face is different, and Dr. Hirsch will discuss ways that you can maximize the results of your procedure.

Can facelifts be combined with other procedures like eyelid lifts?

Definitely! Facelifts and necklifts are commonly performed with other facial rejuvenation procedures such as eyelid lifts (blepharoplasty) and brow lift procedures. Dr. Hirsch also frequently performs fat grafting to correct facial lipoatrophy (fat aging) in combination with facelifts and necklifts. If you are interested in other procedures, you should discuss it with Dr. Hirsch at the time of your consultation.

Additional resources about facelifts and necklifts

Feel free to browse the following links to learn more about facelifts and necklifts:

https://www.plasticsurgery.org/cosmetic-procedures/facelift
https://www.theaestheticsociety.org/procedures/head-face/facelift

Dr. Hirsch is an expert in performing the Facelift procedure for patients in the Los Angeles area. In addition to Facelift, Dr. Hirsch, a plastic surgeon in LA, also offers breast augmentation, breast implant revision, and breast reduction.