Facelift
The
Facelift (rhytidectomy) is a surgical procedure designed to smooth
the loose skin on your face and neck, and to reduce the most apparent
signs of aging in the facial area, giving you a more youthful
appearance. The procedure involves reducing the creases from the
nose and mouth, the slacking jaw line and sagging jowls and fat
deposits around the neck by removing excess fat and tightening
underlying muscles, then redraping the skin on the face and neck.
Although the procedure cannot stop the aging process, it can turn
back the clock on your facial appearance, giving you a younger,
fresher look, which can also have a positive effect on your self-confidence.
The best candidates for a facelift are those who:
- Have face and neck skin that has begun to sag, but still possess
good skin elasticity and whose bone structure is strong and
well defined.
- Experience the loss of a well-defined jaw line
- Have deep wrinkles in the cheeks
- Have loose skin, wrinkles or excess fatty tissue in the neck
A face-lift is performed by generally making an incision around
the natural contour of the ear, and around your earlobe along
your hairline. This helps keeps any scarring from being visible.
Any incision can be easily masked by make-up or hair. If a neck
lift is performed, you may have a small incision under your chin.
Your bandage will stay in place overnight. You may experience
some increased swelling in the first 24 to 48 hours after your
surgery. Most bruising will subside in about 2 weeks. Some numbness
may occur, and your stitches are dissolving.
Since each individual has his or her own unique facial features,
physical reactions and healing abilities, the results of a facelift
vary with each patient and they are never 100% predictable. During
a facelift, complications are infrequent and usually minor. Some
complications that may arise include hematoma (blood under the
skin that must be removed by your doctor), injury to the nerves
that control facial muscles (usually temporary) infection, and
reactions to the anesthesia. Smokers are more likely to experience
poor healing of the skin.
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Forehead
Lift
A forehead lift, or brow lift, is designed to reposition sagging
eyebrows that can cause a person to look tired, sad or angry.
Endoscopic Brow lift, or forehead lift, is the most common endoscopic
procedure used by cosmetic surgeons. With this method, instead
of the usual ear-to-ear incision, two or more tiny incisions,
or "puncture type" incisions are made just at the hairline.
The eyebrows are then repositioned to a higher level, resulting
in a more relaxed, refreshed and youthful appearance.
The best candidates for a forehead/Brow lift are:
- Sagging or low position of the eyebrows creating a tired or
sad appearance
- Deep horizontal creases across the forehead
- Frown lines, or furrows between the eyebrows and top of the
nose
Endoscopy is a surgical procedure that uses a tool called an
endoscope, a special viewing instrument that allows your doctor
to view images of the patient’s internal structures with
minimal incisions. Endoscopy has been used in a number of different
procedures, including gallbladder removal, tubal ligation, and
knee surgery. Now the procedure is being used for cosmetic plastic
surgery applications, in place of techniques that may leave behind
undesirable, or excessively visible scars.
As with any surgical procedure, there is always the possibility
of side effects occurring. Some side effects of a brow lift include
infection, fluid accumulation under the skin, which may need to
be drained, blood vessel damage, nerve damage or loss of feeling,
internal perforation injury, and skin injury. Despite the known
risks, endoscopic surgery complications are rare and it must be
noted that endoscopy has been used successfully for decades in
orthopedic, urologic, and gynecologic procedures, and the technique
is continually improving.
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Nose
Surgery
Surgery of the nose is one of the most common of all plastic
surgery procedures. There are individuals who have been unhappy
with the appearance of their nose for their whole life, and there
are individuals who have had their nose altered as a result of
injury. Rhinoplasty offers a solution to these individuals. The
best candidates for a rhinoplasty are those people who are looking
for an improvement in the way they look, not those searching for
perfection. There are many ways rhinoplasty can improve upon one’s
nasal appearance. This surgery can reduce or increase the overall
size of your nose, change the shape of the tip or bridge, narrow
or widen the nostrils. Not only can rhinoplasty enhance appearance,
it can also help improve one’s breathing. The consultation
is an important part of the process because it allows the doctor
to examine the current state of the nose and determine what can
be done to enhance its appearance.
The rhinoplasty procedure usually takes an hour or two, though
more complicated procedures may take longer. The surgery starts
with the skin of the nose being separated from its supporting
framework of the bone and cartilage, which is then sculpted to
the desired shape. The skin is then redraped over the new framework.
After the surgery is complete, a splint is then applied to help
the nose maintain its new shape. Nasal packs or soft splints may
be placed in the nostrils to stabilize the septum; this is the
dividing wall between the air passages.
After surgery, during the first twenty-four hours, the face will
feel puffy, the nose may ache, and the patient may experience
a dull headache. The patient should plan on resting with their
head elevated for the first day. There will be swelling and bruising
around the eyes, reaching a peak after two to three days. By the
end of one week all packing, dressings, splints and stitches should
be removed and the patient is able to return to school or work.
It will be a few weeks following surgery before patients can resume
more strenuous activities. Healing times vary with patients.
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Ear Pinning Surgery
Otoplasty is a procedure designed to pin back the ears closer
to the head or reduce their size. This procedure can be performed
on younger individuals to avoid being teased from others. This
results in more natural-looking ears. The otoplasty procedure
varies with every patient and their degree of ear deformity.
The
operation usually takes about two to here hours and is performed
in an outpatient setting under general or local anesthesia with
sedation. During the operation, an incision is made behind the
ear to hide any obvious marks of surgical intervention. Multiple,
strategically placed, sutures are placed to shape the cartilage
into normal folds, which were missing pre-operatively. The cartilage
is then re-shaped using techniques of scoring, suturing, limited
removal or combinations of the three.
The reshaped framework is then repositioned to achieve the best
balance with the opposite side and to reduce excessive projection.
The skin is redraped, any excess skin is removed, and the incision
behind the ear is closed. A gentle pressure dressing is placed
to prevent excessive fluid accumulation beneath the skin.
To reduce the swelling or collection of fluid beneath the skin,
you'll have a dressing on your head to put gentle pressure on
your ears and maintain their new position. After about t two or
three days, the dressing will be removed .All of your incisions
will be carefully closed with stitches. Some of the suture will
dissolve while other sutures will require removal in 7 to 10 days.
You'll be able to wash your hair as soon as your head dressing
is removed on the second or third day after surgery.
Most patients experience very little pain following their procedure.
There will be slight discomfort or soreness— mostly when
you bump or move your ears. This will be for about a week or two.
You'll notice some swelling in the ears for two to three weeks
following surgery. Most bruising will resolve in the first week
or two. During this time, you can cover your ears with your hair.
Laser Skin Resurfacing
Skin
resurfacing is a procedure that employs a carbon dioxide (CO2)
laser to remove areas of damaged or wrinkled skin. Resurfacing
is often used to minimize the appearance of wrinkles around the
mouth and eyes, but it is also very effective in treating facial
scars, age spots or areas of uneven pigmentation.
Good candidates for skin resurfacing are:
- People with wrinkled or sun damaged skin on the face
- Brown spots or blotchy skin coloring
- Fine wrinkles on your upper eyelid
- Acne or other facial scars
- Certain skin growths
- Vertical wrinkles around your mouth
- Crows feet
- Superficial facial scars
Skin resurfacing treatments can cover a whole area or focus on
a specific region of skin. These treatments are often used in
conjunction with other procedures such as facelift or eyelid surgery.
Although this is a relatively new procedure, laser resurfacing
has been shown to produce less bleeding bruising or post-procedure
discomfort than other resurfacing methods.
The procedure is relatively quick, and the length of the procedure
can range anywhere from a few minutes to 1 1/2 hours, depending
on the area being covered. Patients are given a local anesthetic
and put under sedation, meaning they are awake but relaxed. However,
for extensive treatment, the physician may prefer to use a general
anesthesia, which will allow you to sleep through the procedure.