Am I a good candidate for a Mini-face lift or a Facelift?
Chevy Chase Facial Plastic Surgery provides a wide array of treatments that help patients look more youthful. Among these solutions, facelift surgery is the option that offers the highest degree of rejuvenation. Facelift surgery addresses the sagging tissues of the cheeks, jowls, and neck by tightening muscles, eliminating skin laxity, and sculpting excess fat within the face and neck.
A “mini” or “weekend” facelift addresses mild to moderate signs of facial aging including the jowls. This technique minimizes the incision and the recovery time. This procedure may not be appropriate for those with heaviness in the neck or more severe signs of facial aging. In these patients, your surgeon may recommend a deep plane face/neck lift, which is the most powerful way to address aging in the lower two thirds of your face and neck. Your surgeon will inform you of the best course of action depending on your individual anatomy and goals.
Chevy Chase Facial Plastic Surgery is a specialty practice, meaning that the majority of our procedures are dedicated to facial rejuvenation. Dr. Jennifer Parker Porter and Dr. Jigar Sitapara have years of experience in these treatments and surgeries, and they prioritize the safety, comfort, and natural appearance of those in their care. With facelift surgery, they use techniques that minimize scarring, with the goal of achieving results that look like the patient’s younger self.
Benefits of Receiving a Facelift from Chevy Chase Facial Plastic Surgery
The procedure provides significantly more tightening than you can achieve even with the most advanced non-surgical options. Our practice is one of less than a few percent of practices that use the deep plane approach, which is the best way to address aging in the lower face and neck. Dr. Porter and Dr. Sitapara provide the following with a lower face and neck lift:
- Well hidden incisions around the natural curves of the ear
- Smooths out fine lines and wrinkles, including the nasolabial folds
- Tightens loose skin in the face
- Defines the jawline
- Reduces drooping in the cheeks and jowls
- Tightens the neck to restore a more youthful appearance
- Restores midfacial volume
- Lifts the corners of the mouth to improve the appearance of “marionette lines”
When treating these conditions, Chevy Chase Facial Plastic Surgery emphasizes natural-looking outcomes and minimal scarring in these procedures: rejuvenation rather than alteration.
Patients choose CCFPS for expert care and a supportive experience. Dr. Porter and Dr. Sitapara have over 25 years in practice combined and hold dual certification with the American Board of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and the American Board of Otolaryngology. Dr. Porter also serves as a faculty member with Georgetown University Hospital’s Department of Head and Neck Surgery.
View Facelift Before and After Gallery
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Buccal Fat Pad Removal
Am I a Candidate for Buccal Fat Pad Removal/Reduction?
This procedure is ideal for people who have always been told they have a “baby face”, despite their age or how much weight they lose. The buccal fat pad is just one of many fat pads in the face and is one that contributes to having round and full cheeks. Dr. Sitapara can safely reduce the size of this fat pad in the office or operating room (depending on patient preference) to improve the contour of the face in a natural fashion. The downtime for buccal fat pad removal/reduction is minimal, so this is a perfect procedure for the right candidate. During your consultation, Dr. Sitapara will examine your facial soft tissue structure as well as your asymmetries to determine if you would benefit from buccal fat pad removal/reduction. He prides himself on reserving this procedure for those that would truly benefit from it and has performed buccal fat pad removal/reduction in people between the ages of 21 and 60.
How Do You Perform Buccal Fat Pad Removal?
Buccal fat pad removal can easily be done in the office or operating room with or without light sedation, through two small incisions in the mouth. The minimally invasive incisions are closed with absorbable stitches, so you do not have to have any removed after the procedure. For patients already undergoing a deep plane face lift, occasionally the buccal fat pad can be removed through those incisions. After the procedure, patients do not need to wear any sort of head wrap or dressing and can resume normal everyday activities the next day.
How long Do The Results of Buccal Fat Pad Removal/Reduction Last?
Since the buccal fat pad is physically reduced during the procedure, the results of buccal fat pad removal are permanent. Weight gain after the procedure can add volume to the rest of the fat pads in the face, but the portion of the buccal fat pad that is removed will never regrow. Initially, there is mild swelling where the buccal fat pad was removed, but patients will see a gradual improvement in their cheek contour as that fluid is resorbed. Most patients will start seeing results of their buccal fat pad removal after 1 month and will continue to see improvements over the following 6-12 months.
The “LIFT AND LUMINATE” Program
The Lift and Luminate Program is an individualized program designed by the surgeons at Chevy Chase Facial Plastic Surgery to improve all aspects of facial aging. As we age, the soft tissue of the face and neck drops, we lose significant volume in the cheeks and temples, and our skin begins to deteriorate. Our specially curated program, combines the deep plane facelift procedure with fat grafting to restore diminished volume and a deep chemical peel to build collagen and improve the appearance of the skin. As a bonus of the program, your surgeon may incorporate botox and filler treatments at your post-operative visits, to further refine your result. This is the most comprehensive way to address all signs of facial aging with the advantage of only one recovery process.
What to Expect for Your Facelift Treatment
As part of your initial consultation at our office:
- You and your surgeon will spend extensive time discussing the facial features that you would like to change.
- You will have a physical examination and review your medical history to ensure that you are a good candidate for facelift surgery.
- The doctors will use facial morphing technology as a communication tool so you fully understand what type of results you can expect.
Once you receive medical clearance from your primary care physician, you will return to CCFPS for a preoperative visit. We will provide you with a kit that has items to make your recovery safer and more comfortable as well as postoperative instructions and answers to any questions you may have.
Dr. Porter and Dr. Sitapara perform all surgeries at the Suburban Outpatient Surgery Center in Bethesda or at Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, DC. On the day of your procedure:
- Your doctor will prepare you for surgery and the nurses will escort you to the operating room.
- You will receive either sedation or general anesthesia; you and your surgeon will discuss this anesthetic protocol as part of your consultation.
- A head wrap will be placed to speed the healing process. This will be removed by our team on the following day
After you wake up from surgery, you will spend about an hour in the recovery room.
The Recovery Process
Expect to stay out of the public eye for 7 days following a mini-lift and 10-14 days following a deep plane face/neck lift. Most people can easily work from home after a few days. Rigorous exercise is not advised for the first two to three weeks, but light activity is encouraged once your sutures are removed. Your surgeon will advise you about homecare, which will include sleeping with your head elevated. You will be able to eat a normal diet and be on your feet after surgery. Tiny drains are placed on a case by case basis in order to speed up your recovery, and will always be removed the day after surgery.
We will ask you to return to CCFPS at different points during your recovery:
- One day after surgery, we will remove your dressing, slip out the small drains if they were placed,, and place a new lightweight wrap. This light wrap can be removed at home the following day, so you can wash your hair/shower.
- After 7-10 days, wewill take out the sutures. You may have some light bruising and swelling that will continue to improve on a daily basis.
- We will see you back at CCFPS one month post-op to ensure you are healing as expected.
After you have fully recovered, you should see the complete benefits of your facelift: more youthful features and a firmer, more well-defined appearance in your lower face and neck.
Facelift Frequently Asked Questions
How Much Younger Will I Look After a Facelift?
When getting a facelift, there is no set guideline for how young a patient will look after the procedure. Results can vary drastically depending on the extent of age-related wrinkles and laxity of the skin, the overall health of the patient, and the patient’s age, as younger patients tend to heal faster and better. Additionally, following the facelift aftercare regimen is essential, as otherwise, the healing process may be inhibited, reducing final results.
However, numerous studies have tackled this subject and found that the average patient looks five to twelve years younger after a facelift procedure. This is not a hard limit; it’s entirely possible for to look even younger under the experienced hands of our surgeons, especially if they avoid sunlight, stop smoking, and drink lots of water while they are healing. Results can be even more rejuvenative with our Lift and Luminate Porgram or if a facelift is paired with other treatments in the face and neck area for a completely revitalized appearance.
To know for sure what kind of results they might be able to expect, patients should schedule a consultation with Chevy Chase Facial Plastic Surgery. We can take a look at their medical history and perform a full examination to get a better idea of the condition of the patient’s skin. Together, we collaborate with our patients to discover their expectations and find a treatment plan that can help them achieve the results they crave. Using this information, we can provide a more accurate estimate for final results.
What Is the Ideal Age to Get a Facelift?
Getting a facelift is an extremely personal decision that must be made by each patient on an individual basis. Everyone ages differently, and some people might be much younger than average when they start to see fine lines and wrinkles ravage their once smooth and taut skin. For most people, this process begins in the mid-20s to late 30s and progresses over time. What might start out as a small crease during a smile can turn into always-present lines that make a person appear older than their age.
The right time to have a facelift is highly variable. It depends on the person and their anatomy. Some people age much quicker than others due to genetics and lifestyle choices. Once the onset of jowls and neck laxity become more noticeable, often patients begin to consider the option of a mini facelift or full facelift.
Are There Other Procedures Involved With a Facelift?
Dr. Porter and Dr. Sitapara can also combine a facelift with other surgeries to restore your facial features more comprehensively. These include:
- Blepharoplasty (eyelid surgery). Rejuvenating the eyelids can give you a more youthful, rested, and alert appearance. This is sometimes combined with a brow lift as well.
- Rhinoplasty (nose surgery). This can change the shape, size, slope, and nostrils of the nose to complement surgical changes in the lower face.
Book Your Consultation
Through a skillful and detail-focused facelift procedure, Drs. Porter and Sitapara can restore a firm and youthful appearance to a patient’s lower face and neck. Comprehensive knowledge of facial anatomy and aesthetic ideals promote results that are attractive, in harmony with other features, and in line with each person’s goals.
Find out more about facelift surgery and other aesthetic procedures through our practice. Contact CCFPS online for a consultation or call our office at (301) 652-8191.
