Face Lift

The term face lift implies the whole face is lifted up when in fact the traditional face lift involves a procedure with incisions in front and/or behind the ear and often under the chin. By definition a standard face lift tightens the lower half of the face and chin which aims to correct the cheek and neck appearance.

Some patients also require a combination of either a brow lift or eyelid surgery and if these procedures are all combined with a standard facelift then the term comprehensive face lift or full face lift is used at the Oral Facial & Implant Centre.

Dr John Webster will explain the small, medium and large versions of the face lift techniques. The smallest face lift (also known as the weekend face lift) is a conservative procedure suited to a small percentage of patients who have minimal concerns with jowls and the neck appearance and a small incision is all that is required to lift the cheek and improve the nasolabial lines and cheek contour.

Small face lift procedures are usually day surgery procedures where you will attend an accredited day surgery or private hospital for the procedure under general anaesthetic and return home on the same day. You will likely require a week off from work to recover.

Medium face lift (traditional face lift) and the large face lift (comprehensive face lift) procedures will also require you to attend an accredited day surgery or private hospital for the surgery under general anaesthetic and usually return home on the same day. Depending on the extent of the surgery you may need to stay overnight and be reviewed in the morning at the hospital prior to completing your recovery in the comfort of your own home. You will likely require two weeks leave from work and play to recover from a medium or large face lift procedure.

Face lift was developed over a century ago and has improved dramatically over this time, in particular within the last decade due to increased contemporary techniques and more access to training with world leaders and pioneers in the field of facial cosmetic surgery.

A generation ago face lift surgery would involve several days in hospital however now with control of bleeding and swelling, improved anaesthesia and advanced instruments such as the endoscopic brow lift.

Many clients in Australia have embraced dermal filler and anti-wrinkle injections to address the signs of aging however these treatments do not address excess or loose skin adequately without using too much dermal filler resulting in  an over-filled or overdone appearance.

Today’s clients are having more regular small treatments rather than a comprehensive face lift and rhinoplasty in one day. There is more acceptance and uptake of the small or weekend face lift to achieve the results that many thousands of dollars of dermal filler has not achieved. In fact many clients have smaller surgeries along the way to maintain the fresh youthful appearance rather than waiting to look aged before proceeding to surgery. The previous generation would wait to look old before proceeding to surgery, but that generation did not have such wide access to dermal fillers and anti-wrinkle treatments in Australia at that time.

Face lift surgery with Dr John Webster in  Toowoomba can also be refined post-surgery with the non-surgical treatments which may achieve some skin resurfacing or skin tightening after the excess skin and volume of the face has been restored resulting in the optimum face lift procedure for your face. 

The effect of turning back the clock with face lift surgery will last a lifetime as you will always look younger than your age. However, we can’t stop the clock and you will continue to age. As you age the tightened tissues from the face lift procedure will begin to slowly sag again with time and you may require a further tweaking procedure in the future.

No facial surgeon can guarantee how long a cosmetic procedure will last however one thing can be safely said and that is face lift surgery will last longer than any non-surgical treatment and sometimes the costs of both are comparable therefore one is often a better long-term investment than the other. Each client has their cosmetic journey and some need to experiment with the non-surgical treatments before considering the long-term benefits of face lift surgery. At the Oral Facial & Implant Centre, Dr Webster will consult with you and assess your suitability for cosmetic surgical procedures to non-surgical methods with the aim to achieve your desired goals. Dr Webster will guide you on the evidence of longevity of different new and older technologies in the complex world of non-surgical facial cosmetic procedures.

No.  Dr John Webster will aim to preserve the natural appearance of your hairline and your hair and discuss options with you as all patients are different.