Facelift
The S-lift is a lower facelift for individuals who have mild to moderate loss of elasticity in the skin of the upper neck and in the jowls. The procedure is done under tumescent local anesthesia. Avoiding a general anesthetic has many safety benefits, and it is less invasive for the patient.
Tumescent anesthesia involves injecting a medicated solution of lidocaine(a local anesthetic) and epinephrine (a drug that contracts blood vessels) under the skin, allowing the area to be completely anesthetized (numbed) and the procedure to be performed without discomfort and with minimal blood loss. IV sedation may also be used during the procedure to promote relaxation.
Facelift is a procedure that is indicated when the skin of the jawline, jowls and neck has loosened significantly. With lesser degrees of loosening, Thermage tightening is very helpful- and is also indicated after an initial surgical facelift when over the years the skin again begins to loosen.
Facelift surgery is performed after submental and jowl liposuction if there is fat descent and gathering in these areas and on its own if there is no significant fat to consider. We like to use tumescent local anesthesia with both procedures. In addition, some individuals also prefer to have intravenous sedation; others prefer mild oral sedation.The dilution of the tumescent solution seems to help it distribute itself between the fat cells and to close tiny capillaries that might otherwise bleed. We use a very fine cannula to gently remove the excess fat- and often we remove between 75 cc to 175 cc of fat.
The facelift procedure is then performed to redrape the facial skin over the “new” jawline and neck. We like to check for symmetry midway during the liposuction and the facelift by elevating the patient into a comfortable sitting position and then checking for right/left equality and adjusting the treatment appropriately. After all, we always depend on gravity to check the fit of our clothing and the face also deserves this respect!
"The S-lift is a lower facelift for individuals who have mild to moderate loss of elasticity in the skin of the upper neck and in the jowls. The procedure is done under tumescent local anesthesia.".
