Facelift Options

A facelift can make you look younger, restoring a more naturally youthful appearance by lifting and firming sagging facial tissues. When excess, sagging, skin is removed, deep folds are smoothed, and the deep tissues of the face are lifted and tightened, a facelift can potentially work wonders.

As we age, our face naturally loses its elasticity and volume. As a result, it is common to develop jowls, neck bands, lower cheeks, and loose skin. The signs of aging are a natural part of growing older, but some patients find that a facelift is a good solution to these concerns and can help to boost their confidence.

Types of Facelifts

Mini-Facelift

A mini facelift is often appropriate for patients who have minimal sagging skin and mild jowls. In this less invasive technique, the surgeon makes discreet incisions along the hairline above each ear and usually around the ear creases to tighten deep facial tissues. Jowls are reduced, the cheeks are lifted, and the neck is tightened by lifting and tethering structural tissues around ear and hairline. This results in a more youthful and rested appearance.

Dr Smith will recommend what type of anesthesia is appropriate for your individual needs when performing a mini facelift. Typically, local anesthesia and sedation are used. A mini facelift can help to delay the need for more invasive surgery for several years by addressing unwanted signs of aging before they become too prominent. It’s the perfect option for those who don’t require, or desire, a standard facelift.

Deep Plane Facelift

Deep Plane facelifts are the more well-known, procedure that provides a comprehensive solution for moderate to advanced aging around of the face and neck. Despite the longer recovery time compared to a mini facelift, the results are much more dramatic. The surgeon will make an incision located behind the hairline, near the temples, and around the front of the ear to remove excess skin and reposition the deeper tissues beneath the skin to eliminate jowls and restore a youthful appearance to the face and neck. Dr Smith employees the newest techniques that dispense with the tell-tell signs of older standard skin lifts.

How Does Facelift Surgery Work?

Plastic surgeons use different techniques for a facelift depending on factors such as a patient’s anatomy and personal aesthetic goals. Some less extensive procedures can be performed under local anesthesia with some sedation, although general anesthesia is usually used for the vast majority of standard facelifts.

Incisions are made to separate the skin from the muscles and connective tissue underneath. As a result, the surgeon is able to reposition the deeper facial tissues (called the SMAS) and improve the skin’s foundation, while repositioning the underlying structures to a more youthful and natural position. After removing excess skin, the remaining skin is gently repositioned over the newly rejuvenated tissue, creating a smoother, more youthful appearance without an overtightening or wind-swept look.

Can I Have a Nonsurgical Facelift?

Some non-invasive treatments can make you look more youthful without removing sagging skin or repositioning tissues. If you don’t think that a surgical facelift is the right option for you, you could consider alternatives, such as Botox, fat injections, dermal fillers, a liquid facelift, micro-needling, chemical peels, or laser skin resurfacing. Place link here to other page

Facelifts are a very common procedure that many people undergo when they wish to reduce signs of aging. There are numerous different facelift options, which can be tailored to your specific needs. Contact the office today to learn more.

The Many Uses of Botox for the Face

Botox is a well-known procedure used to remove wrinkles from the face, typically in the forehead or the area around the eyes. What is not commonly known is that Botox has far more uses for the face than just helping with appearance. Here, we will talk about many of the ways Botox injections can be used to treat different conditions.

Eyelid Spasms

Botox is a neurotoxin which temporarily paralyzes nerves, and thus, stops the nerves from communicating with the muscles. With blepharospasm (eyelid spasms), an individual loses control of the basal ganglia, which controls their eye movements. This can cause droopy eyelids or uncontrollable twitching. These abnormal facial movements can be very disruptive to everyday life. Botox works by blocking the nerves from communicating with their muscles at the neuromuscular junction. In blocking receptors, the drug cuts off access to the nerves, so the muscles become paralyzed, which stops spasms.

Crossed Eyes

Botox was also initially approved for treating crossed eyes, also known as strabismus. Crossed eyes can be congenital in children or result from trauma, such as blunt force trauma to the eye area. When people have crossed eyes, they can be permanently corrected by surgery, but they may also opt to get Botox first to relax their muscles and see what the uncrossed eye will look like. Botox can also be used by people with strabismus to calm their eye muscles without having to undergo eye surgery.

Hypersalivation

Hypersalivation can be an extremely irritating condition, often negatively affecting the sufferer’s ability to live a normal day-to-day life. Fortunately, yes, Botox can actually be used to treat hypersalivation by paralyzing the nerves and stopping them from overproducing saliva.

Bell’s Palsy

An individual with Bell’s palsy suffers from one-half of their face drooping as a result of facial nerve paralysis. It can be caused when pregnant, when someone has diabetes, or when a virus has been transmitted, and with other viruses, such as Lyme disease. With recovery of the nerve, the crossed fibers can cause severe facial tics and spasms. The spasmodic facial muscles can be relaxed with Botox injections to aid recovery in Bell’s Palsy.

Spasmodic Dysphonia

Spasmodic dysphonia is characterized by the sound of shaky, strained, or hoarse vocal cords. Even though it affects the voice, it is actually classified as a neurological condition, and not a speech disorder. With spasmodic dysphonia, an individual’s speech can be affected by uncontrolled spasms caused by abnormal brain signals. Botox helps by weakening the muscles of the vocal cords so that the voice is smoother and more stable, with less strainig.

Thyroid Eye Disease

If the thyroid is overactive due to Graves’ disease or hyperthyroidism, the eyes sometimes cannot close completely. When a person has thyroid eye disease, their eyelids can often appear retracted or bulging. But, with Botox injections, the eyelid’s muscles weaken, causing the eyelids to appear more normal.

Botox is commonly known as the solution to fine lines and wrinkles. But it has so many more beneficial uses than just reducing the visible effects of aging.