Step 1: Facelift Surgery Goals
In order to appreciate the purpose of facelifting techniques, it is first important to understand the goals of the procedure. As a person ages, the elasticity or rebound ability of the skin decreases. This inevitable change along with the effects of gravity create a sagging lower face with lax neck skin, jowls, marionette lines, nasolabial folds, and generalized wrinkling. Denver facelift surgery cannot recapture your skin's elasticity, but is designed to remove excess skin in order to lift the face back to a more youthful position. All facelift operations are designed to affect three regions: the neck, jaw line, and cheeks. By elevating and tightening these areas, loose neck tissues are tightened, the jaw line is defined which reduces the jowls and marionette lines (lines down from the corner of the mouth), and the cheeks are elevated which reduces the nasolabial folds (lines down from the corner of the nose or parentheses lines). This lessens these characteristic signs of aging as well as reduces generalized facial wrinkling. Tightening the underlying structures is performed to enhance the effectiveness and longevity of the rejuvenation.
The minimal-incision rhytidectomy (mini-facelift) is an advancement in facelifting techniques which trends toward less invasiveness, shorter scars, less pain, and a shorter recovery without compromising the results. While the goals of improving facial aesthetics are the same, the methods are slightly altered in order to optimize the rejuvenation and minimize the drawbacks of surgery. The following illustrations serve to describe the techniques used during a mini-facelift operation and to explain how it differs from a more traditional facelift approach.
To learn more about face lift in Denver, be sure to check out all the resources on our site and when you're ready, request your appointment with Dr. Vath or Dr. Wolfe at The Center for Cosmetic Surgery in Cherry Creek or in Golden.