With age, the skin and tissue structure around the face, chin, and neck changes, losing elasticity and volume, and causing the appearance of droopy skin, facial folds, and wrinkles. This happens equally among women and men.

For people who want to eliminate such issues, and restore youthfulness to their face, a facelift is the best solution to achieve a more youthful look, and “turn back the clock” of time.

It is a safe and highly popular procedure, has a short recovery time, and can provide you the best results.

A Facelift surgery is not the only way forward for reduction of facial wrinkles. There are non-surgical options, and minimally invasive techniques too:

• Ultherapy
• Thread lift
• Facial fillers & injections
• Fat grafting using your own body fat
• Chemical peels
• Laser skin resurfacing
• Microdermabrasion

During our initial consultation, I will be in a better position to guide which technique will suit you the most. However, for this page, we will only focus on the surgical procedure of facelift.  Connect with me today to schedule an appointment.

If you are an adult – male or female, in generally good health, with realistic goals of what can be achieved through facelift, you can potentially be a good candidate for facelift.

If the folds and wrinkles around your face are bothering you, and if the baggy facial skin make you appear older than your age, and your skin still has elasticity, then you sound like the right candidate for a facelift. You can consider facelift if you have any of the issues below:

• Sagging muscles in lower jaw, resulting in jowls
• Double chin with loose skin and excess fat
• Drooping skin around cheeks, nose, lower face, jawline, and neck
• Nasolabial folds – deep creases running from your nose to your mouth corners
• Marionette lines – fold lines running from your mouth corners to your chin
• Loss or loosening of facial fat

During our initial consultation, I will evaluate the seriousness of your condition and the need for you to undertake this procedure.

Facelift results are long-lasting, and with proper post-operative care, they can easily last over 10 years. Of course, your face will continue aging even after the procedure is done. You may opt for revisionary surgery after a decade.

Facelift is usually done as an outpatient procedure, and the patient goes back home the same day accompanied by a friend or relative.

The obvious swelling and bruising may take 10-14 days to recede, and the stiches are usually opened within a week’s time. And when you resume work / social activities, usually within a couple of weeks, your colleagues and friends will remark on your fresh looks.  

Following the recommended post-recovery plan will help you recover faster.

Importantly, the skill of your facelift surgeon also affects your recovery period. When we meet, I will share actual cases of my patients and what enabled their quick recovery.

Every surgery carries some risks, but at this stage of my experience and expertise, I have been successful in eliminating the following risks:

• Life threatening risks such as Thromboembolism, etc.
• Infections of any kind
• Excessive Bleeding
• Seromas

Some of the risks that I have been able to reduce significantly are:

• Scars of the port
• Skin unevenness
• Lumpiness
• Skin laxity
• Contour deformities
• Over correction
• Under correction

There are some risks that are unpredictable and out of my control:

• Improper skin retraction
• Recurrence of fat

Depending on your specific circumstances, and the extent of correction desired, you can opt for a full traditional facelift, a limited facelift (mid-face lift, mini facelift), or a neck lift. The effect achieved, and the placement of the incisions differs in each of these options.

Full Traditional Facelift

A full traditional facelift gives the best and most lasting results. Your incision will start in your hairline at your temples, down to the front of your ears, and then going into the natural creases behind your ears, and ending at your lower scalp.

A skilled facelift surgeon will chisel the fat aesthetically, reposition facial tissues, lift deeper facial layers and muscles, redrape the skin over your new facial contours, and give you a natural looking youthful appearance with the procedure.  

Limited Incision Facelift

These are short cuts to a full facelift, and obviously provide lesser impact than a full facelift. However, they have the advantage of a shorter recovery period and smaller incisions/ scars.

Mini Facelift

A mini face lift surgery is a minimally invasive type of facial cosmetic surgery and a good alternate to a complete face lift procedure. The focus is on improving the nasolabial fold and the sagging lower chin. The endoscopic method of surgery ensures faster recovery, lesser pain, and lesser scarring.

Mid Facelift

The mid facelift surgery is most useful for improving the appearance of the cheeks. In this, the surgeon aims to make the cheeks look fuller and improve the area around the nose and mouth as well. It is an effective alternate for people looking to get better looking cheeks, mouth and nose area without the need to go for an extensive total facelift surgery.

Lower Facelift

The lower facelift surgery focuses on the bottom one-third of the face, targeting the elimination of jowls, marionette lines, and nasolabial folds.

Thread Facelift, or Thread lift

This is also known as a ‘feather lift’ and is a minimally invasive surgical procedure. It involves improving the upper facial region, including the forehead, eyes, and the nasolabial region. This cosmetic facelift surgery does not require removing skin but uses fine sets of staples and sutures to keep the sagging upper facial skin in place. It does not require anesthesia, and leaves no visible scars.

The facelift surgery can be performed using various techniques:

SMAS (Superficial Musculo Aponeurotic System)

The SMAS facelift surgery concerns itself mainly with tightening of the SMAS supporting ligaments under the cheeks. With ageing, these underlying tissues are likely to become weak and sag. This procedure is used to effectively tighten the supporting tissue which in turn results in smoother looking cheeks.

Composite Facelift

A composite facelift surgery is a comparatively more complex cosmetic surgery. It requires accessing the deeper underlying layers of facial supporting tissue to reposition them and to increasing their mobility for better facial expressions.  

Deep Plane Face Lift

This facial cosmetic surgery is most useful for improving the nasolabial region of the face. It helps to make the nose more pronounced.

Subperiosteal Facelift

Subperiosteal Facelifts reach even deeper than Deep Plane lifts, though even this technique targets the mid-face/ nasolabial region. A subperiosteal facelift should be performed only by an extremely skilled and specialized facelift surgeon.

The above techniques are used when performing a full/ traditional facelift, and require a skilled and certified plastic surgeon, as they involve significant rearrangement of the deeper layers of facial tissues.

During our initial consultation, and after assessment of your facial characteristics, I will evaluate what technique would be most appropriate, and discuss it with you.

Facelift cost varies based on the following factors:

• Type of facelift done – full, mid-face, mini, etc.
• Facelift technique used for the surgery
• Hospital/ Clinic used for the surgery
• Skill & expertise of the facelift surgeon

Since Facelift is usually done as a cosmetic procedure, insurance does not cover the cost. It is therefore important that you are fully aware of the total costs of the procedure, from initial consultation to follow-ups, so you can make an informed decision.

Another significant aspect to take into consideration, besides just the costs, is your comfort factor with the facial plastic surgeon, and your faith in the surgeon’s expertise. Pay a bit more – but be sure, and be comfortable with your surgeon.

To know the cost applicable for your specific case, please book a consultation.

The choice of your facelift surgeon is a decision to be made with due care. While cost is a relevant consideration, there are other more important factors that should determine your decision:

• Qualifications and certification, specifically plastic surgery related certifications and memberships, such as membership of American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS)
• Years of experience as a plastic surgeon, and number of surgeries done
• Number of facelift surgeries done, and frequency thereof
• Proof of work – before/ after images
• Patient testimonials
• Surgeon reputation
• Your comfort factor with the surgeon, his manners, his patience in answering your questions
• Surgeon’s philosophy regarding patient safety

You are planning a surgery, so it’s very important that you decide wisely.

You can read my full profile here.

The clinic or hospital for your Facelift surgery should be carefully chosen. Ensure that the facility is licensed. A hospital is not necessary for a facelift surgery, an accredited/ licensed clinic is just fine.

The clinic should have a licensed anaesthetist on board, competent nursing and operations staff, and the surgical room should be clean and hygienic.

Ministry of Health (MOH), Dubai regularly conducts inspection of all medical and surgical facilities in Dubai and license is granted or renewed only if the prescribed conditions regarding hygiene, safety, etc. are met.

My medical center – Cocoona Center for Aesthetic Transformation, Dubai is an MOH-licensed clinic, and we are permitted to perform surgeries under local anaesthesia. We also have competent anaesthesiolgists on board, and a full team of caring and professional nurses, patient counselors, and other support staff.

The basic Facelift process involves removal of excess fat and skin from either the upper eyelid, or the lower eyelid, or from both. I have done multiple facelift surgeries to improve the area around my patients’ eyes. The surgery will be done either at an accredited day care surgical facility such as my medical center Cocoona, in Dubai, or a hospital, depending upon your choice, and anesthesia considerations.

Understanding the process involves knowing about anesthesia, the surgical steps, post-procedure recovery, return to normalcy, risks involved, and expected results.   

• What anesthesia is used?  

The procedure involves some form of anesthesia.

It is usually done under local anesthesia with IV sedation, or general anesthesia.

• What are the surgical steps during this procedure? 

The surgical procedure has 4 stages:

Stage 1 – Administering the anesthesia

Stage 2 – Making the incision based on the type of facelift being done – traditional/ full facelift, mid face lift, mini facelift, or neck lift.

Stage 3 – Closing the incisions with self-dissolving sutures, or ones that might need manual removal

Stage 4 – View the results once the swelling has dissipated.

Based on the type of facelift surgery being done, and the technique I will use, this surgery will be customised for each patient, depending on the most significant problem area/s to be treated.

During our initial consultation, I will explain these procedures as appropriate to your specific case.

At this stage, you are likely to have some more questions for me to clarify. Some such questions are covered herein. I will be glad to answer these and any other concerns you have.

• What is the recovery phase immediately after the procedure? 

After completing the procedure, as the effects of the anesthesia wears out, there will be mild to medium pain and discomfort which will be managed with pain killers. The incisions will be covered with pressure bandages to minimize swelling. Drainage tubes may also be put in place to drain excess fluids for up to 48 hours.

If the surgery is an outpatient one, you will be able to go home the same day, accompanied by a family member or friend. Applying regular cool compress aids the reduction of post-operative swelling. For the first 2 weeks after surgery, keeping your head elevated is recommended, as opposed to lying down flat.

After a week or so, the sutures are removed, and general check-up is done. Most of the swelling disappears within the first 2 weeks, and you can resume work then.

You should avoid strenuous exercises, bending and lifting weights for up to 6-8 weeks, and until after my express permission. Makeup too should be avoided until permitted.

When will the results be visible? 

In most cases, you will see some improvement immediately, and then gradually notice further improvement. After the swelling disappears, which is around 10-14 days, your friends will see the difference and comment on your younger, fresher looks, and you will feel more confident about yourself.

The incision marks will take much longer to fade – up to 1 year.