Mini Lift: A Thing of Beauty

Traditionally, sagging facial skin has been corrected with a brow, face and neck lift. Along with that comes a three to six-hour trip to the operating room and a recovery of at least two to three weeks. If you have less drastic signs of facial aging, skin laxity, and jowling, however, you may be able to have a mini facelift.

According to Dr. Few, a mini-lift has a shorter incision area around the ear, and is only invasive enough to pull the muscle and tissue (SMAS) under the skin and achieve a nice result. As for downtime, a long weekend is generally all that’s needed, he says. (Compare that to the 2 to 3 weeks of downtime required by the traditional nip and tuck!)

Need a Lift? Needle vs Scalpel...

If your neck needs a lift, chances are so does your face. In fact, these two procedures are often performed simultaneously. Today, however, we've learned several things about the way the face ages and those insights have influenced the way we approach facial rejuvenation. Your face may need a lift, but it doesn't necessarily involve a scalpel.

We know today that facial aging is a 3-dimensional process: wrinkles and sun damage to the skin, loss of volume, and general drooping of tissue. Instead of pulling it all up and snipping it off in a traditional facelift procedure (can you say "wind-blown" look?), surgeons today are filling lines with soft tissue fillers (Restylane, Perlane, Juvederm) or fat, and picking up that excess skin by revolumizing the midface (cheeks). Often referred to as a liquid facelift, if the needle can effectively meet your goals, a surgical facelift not necessarily indicated.

But that isn't to say that the facelift is a thing of the past. If you haven't taken preventive measures along the way, have significant drooping skin, and the aging process has simply caught up with you, a surgical facelift may be needed to meet your rejuvenation goals.

At the end of the day, it's all about a customized approach to your face. If there's one thing we know for certain in the aesthetic industry (contrary to past approaches), one size does not fit all!