As we age, loss of skin elasticity causes the skin to sag, principally along the jawline and into the neck. Traditional facelift surgery only addressed the overlying facial skin, but Dr. Licata uses advanced deep plane facelift techniques to lift and tighten the underlying tissues while removing excess fat deposits. This allows him to correct moderate to severe sagging skin, wrinkles, and loose skin while creating more natural-looking results that refresh your youthful appearance. A full facelift procedure targets the jawline and midface and is often combined with neck lift to target a double chin created by loose skin and stubborn fat. The midface lift targets deep nasolabial folds, sunken cheeks, and sagging skin on the lower face. Other procedures like a brow lift, forehead lift, or blepharoplasty (eyelid surgery) can be combined with your facelift to address other signs of aging and provide comprehensive facial rejuvenation.

Good candidates for a facelift:

• are in good overall health
• want to lift and tighten loose skin on the face and neck
• have realistic expectations for the procedure

If you are not ready for a facelift or are not a good surgical candidate, Dr. Licata may recommend a non-surgical facelift or liquid facelift, which uses dermal fillers to temporarily fill in deep wrinkles and restore volume loss

Preoperative facelift instructions may include the elimination of certain drugs containing aspirin and nicotine for several weeks before the facelift surgery to minimize the possibility of excess bleeding. Antibiotics may be prescribed to prevent infection after the facelift. Patients may be instructed to shampoo their hair the night before facelift surgery, and a small amount of hair at the temples or around the ears may be shaved before the procedure.

Before facelift surgery, your medical history is evaluated to determine your general health and ensure this procedure is safe for you. Dr. Licata will discuss how you want your face to look and what results can realistically be expected from the facelift.

A facelift can be performed under general anesthesia or monitored anesthesia care with the patient asleep. During the facelift procedure, the surgeon works on only one side of the face at a time. Incisions are made inside the hairline at the temple, running in front of the ear, then around the earlobe and behind the ear, ending in the hair of the scalp. Loose skin is separated from underlying facial tissues and is pulled up and back, and excess skin is removed. Connective tissue and sagging muscles are tightened, and in some cases, fat deposits are removed from beneath the chin and neck. This may necessitate additional tiny incisions under the chin. Tiny sutures are used to close the incisions. A rhytidectomy or facelift may take three to five hours or more depending on whether other facial plastic surgery procedures are done at the same time.

Each year, thousands of rhytidectomies or facelifts are performed successfully. Complications connected with this facial surgery are rare; however, there are certain inherent risks connected with every surgical procedure, which should be discussed with the physician prior to surgery. Patients can minimize complications by carefully following directions given by the physician.

After facelift surgery, bandages that are applied to the area are removed within a few days. Patients who had the procedure performed will be released from the center that day.

 Pain connected with facial surgeries are minimal to moderate and controlled with oral medication. Scars from the facelift incisions will fade significantly with time and are, for the most part, inconspicuous because they are made within natural creases.

 The amount of improvement you see after a facelift varies, depending on the initial condition of the patient and the extent of their procedure. In most cases, a single procedure achieves the desired results, while in some cases, additional facial procedures may be indicated. Most patients who have had a facelift are delighted with their more attractive, rested appearance.

A facelift can help you achieve a rejuvenated appearance that boosts your confidence and refreshes your naturally youthful look. To learn more about the facelift procedure, schedule a consultation today at one of our four offices in Nashville, Tullahoma, and Clarksville, TN, and Hopkinsville, KY to get started on your personalized treatment plan.

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