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Facelift
in Tunbridge Wells, Kent

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What is a facelift?

Facelift surgery is a key interest and specialisation of Ms Nugent’s. A facelift is a procedure that lifts and tightens the skin and underlying support layer of tissue (SMAS) of your face and repositions them in a more youthful position to rejuvenate your face particularly the lower face, jowl and jawline areas. A full facelift combines a face and necklift for a more comprehensive rejuvenation and result. This is one of the most, if not the most effective facial rejuvenation procedures. The deep plane facelift, where the SMAS and overlying skin are released and moved back into a more youthful position restoring facial contours in a very natural way is the most common technique that Ms Nugent uses. It can be combined readily with a necklift including deep reduction neck lifts. She will also use other SMAS techniques such as high SMAS flaps, SMAS plication and SMASectomies when best for your facial concerns and facial tissues as this is surgery that needs to be tailored to the individual.

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Who is suitable for a facelift?

If you are concerned by excess skin or jowling along your jawline, sagging in your lower face or cheek area and deepening folds between your cheek and upper lip or chin and loose skin on your neck, you may be suitable for a facelift.

Caution!

If you smoke, are on blood-thinning medication, have high blood pressure or have significant health problems, this will need to be assessed and you may be advised to wait or not to have a facelift.

The procedure

There are variations depending on your individual anatomy and goals. The surgery usually takes place under general anaesthesia but can be done under local anaesthesia with or without sedation depending on the extent of change needed. Short scar facelifts can be done under local anaesthetic alone. Skin incisions are placed as discretely as possible in the natural line along your temple hairline, in front of your ear at the junction between your ear and cheek, around your earlobe and usually but not always behind your ear. An incision may be made underneath your chin as well. The skin is lifted up. The SMAS tissues of your cheek and lower face are lifted and secured in a more youthful position. The equivalent neck muscle (the platysma muscle) is also tightened and/or repositioned (except in short scar facelifts). Sometimes excess fat in the neck or lower face is removed (directly or with liposuction). Fat may also be added (see Facial Lipofilling (Fat Transfer)) in thinner faces to restore volume and help skin quality. If submandibular salivary glands are enlarged or very visible, they can also be reduced as part of a deep necklift to create a better jawline. Excess skin is removed after this. Drains are sometimes placed but much less commonly by Ms Nugent nowadays. Stitches will need to be removed 5 to 7 days later. A ‘haemostatic net’ of external sutures is often placed to help skin sit in and drape to its new position as well as reducing the risk of haematomas or seromas. If used, these sutures will be removed 2 to 3 days later.

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Recovery

On average 2 to 3 weeks off work are needed.If a haemostatic external suture net is used, it can take a couple of weeks for the pinpoint suture marks to fade. Allow at least 4 weeks before important social occasions. No heavy lifting or strenuous activity is allowed for 6 weeks. Reduce bending and stooping as much as possible and sleep on extra pillows at night to help reduce swelling. Some forms of exercise can be restarted at 4 weeks. Most exercise is restarted at 6 weeks. Driving is not allowed until you are safe to perform an emergency stop.

Complications

Unfortunately, complications can occur after all surgery and you need to be aware of this. Ms Nugent will do her utmost to reduce your risk as much as she can. This includes the health and procedure advice she gives you before surgery, the care and precautions she takes during surgery and the advice she gives you after surgery. Some of the complications that can happen include slow healing, infection, bleeding, poor scarring, asymmetry, pain, numbness or sensitivity in the skin, seroma (fluid build-up), damage to the facial nerve which can cause weakness of eyebrow movement or weakness of upper lip movement or weakness of lower lip movement, recurrence of facial and neck loose skin and sagging, distortion of earlobe shape, loss of skin that has been lifted (higher risk in smokers or if you have high blood pressure or have a haematoma after surgery), persistence of suture marks, pressure on your breathing if a large haematoma develops in the neck.

Successful surgery

Most patients who undergo facelift surgery are very happy with their results and find that it really rejuvenates and refreshes their lower face and neck appearance. Success depends on being prepared for your surgery, choosing the right procedure, the surgery itself and recovering well. All steps in the journey are crucial!

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Download the detailed information booklet on this page to read more.

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Book a consultation to discuss your individual circumstances with Ms Nugent!

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