Getting Better Results in Facelifting

Abstract

The facelift has significantly evolved over the past several decades. What was once considered a skin only operation is now a sophisticated, elegant procedure that requires meticulous preoperative analysis, understanding of underlying anatomically based aging changes, and extreme attention to detail. According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, 125,697 facelifts were performed in 2017. It is not surprising that given these advances that facial rejuvenation surgery is still a very common procedure with a high degree of patient satisfaction despite the increase in nonsurgical facial aging treatments. With an improved understanding of facial anatomy including the facial retaining ligaments and intervening superficial and deep fat compartments, the modern facelift requires an anatomically targeted approach. Furthermore, the modern facelift surgeon must achieve consistently excellent results with reasonably little downtime while being aware of methods to improve the safety of this popular elective procedure. Hematoma is the most common complication after rhytidectomy with an incidence between 0.9% and 9%, with a higher incidence in males. Other potential complications include seroma, nerve injury, skin flap necrosis, siaolocele as a consequence of submandibular gland debulking, and skin flap rhytid and hairline distortion. This review aims to discuss safe, consistent, and reproducible methods to achieve success with facelift.