Face lift

What happens with aging? The skin loosens, the muscles weaken and the ligaments lose their elasticity. A facelift is a common plastic and cosmetic surgery procedure. The contours of the face are restored by removing excess skin and tightening the underlying tissues. This procedure is often combined with an eyelid lift, brow lift, and/or neck lift. Depending on the surgical technique, a facelift can result in approximately 8 to 10 years of rejuvenation. Depending on the skin, connective tissue, and your age, the results are stable for about 10 to 15 years after the procedure. With a facelift, you can turn back the clock and maintain your natural appearance.

During the initial consultation, we make sure that a facelift will be beneficial for you. For this purpose we clarify questions about your general health. We measure the various skin parameters and analyse whether other areas such as the forehead, eyebrows, neck or eyelids also need to be corrected. Smoking should ideally be stopped 3 weeks before and 3 weeks after the operation. Certain medications that increase the risk of bleeding, such as aspirin, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and certain vitamin supplements, should also be discontinued 3 weeks prior to surgery. You will receive detailed instructions from us before the operation.

On the day of the operation we take pictures of the face in a standing position. An experienced anaesthetist will inform you about the planned general anaesthetic. Fine incisions are made along the hairline and around the ear. A facelift tightens the facial features and improves the oval of the face, rejuvenating the appearance with inconspicuous scars behind the ears and at the temples. Excess skin is removed and the muscles and connective tissue (SMAS) are tightened. The procedure takes several hours. At the end of the operation, a special head bandage with compression is applied. An overnight stay in the clinic is standard.

Immediately after the operation you will wear a bandage around your head. After the operation you will need to take antibiotics for 4 days. After the operation you should rest for fourteen days. From the second day, you can wash your hair thoroughly again. The stitches will be removed after two weeks. Unpleasant accompanying symptoms such as a feeling of tension, swelling and bruising usually disappear after 10 to 14 days. Light physical activities can be resumed after only a few days. After 6 weeks you can resume sports. In order to make the scar as invisible as possible, scar treatment should be started three weeks after the operation. Special scar ointments are suitable for this purpose, which should be applied three times a day to the corresponding areas. A massage promotes the absorption of the cream. As long as the scar is red or pink, you should protect it from the sun.

In principle, every operation involves certain risks – for example, infections or haematomas. The sensitivity of the skin to touch may also be reduced after the operation. After the operation, bruising, redness and slight swelling often occur. Sometimes there may be disturbances in the healing process under mechanical stress, disturbances in the healing process and asymmetries