Facelift: The “King” reassumes his throne

Plastic Surgeon Dr Dimitris Triantafyllou is the Head of the Department of the Cosmetic Plastic Surgery at GENESIS Hospital in Thessaloniki, Greece. Having many years of experience in the field of cosmetic plastic surgery, he redeems the somewhat “misunderstood” facelift for those women who are seriously thinking about going forward with improving their external appearance with the help of science.

By asking a few questions about the different types of medical and cosmetic procedures, and the manner in which these are performed, this article aims to emphasise the value of knowledge, experience, and strict professionalism with regard to the classic plastic surgery of the face.  The facelift (rhytidectomy) represents the leading cosmetic surgical procedure, but is perhaps the most misunderstood one as well. 

Wishing to share his personal experience of 20 years as a Plastic Surgeon with the reader, Dr Triantafyllou makes the following observations:

The traps of beauty

Magazines often feature various new names for techniques using creams, injectable materials (liquid facelift, baby facelift, Vampire facelift etc.) or machines that attempt to mimic the facelift procedure, but there is no real comparison between these, either as procedures or with regard to the results.  In the media, we see faces with extremely swollen lips, cheeks, cheekbones, etc. and there are comments about their “failed” facelifts.  The facelift procedure is not at all related to these types of effects, which are usually the result of the injection of materials such as fat, hyaluronic acid and hydroxyapatites to an exaggerated degree, leading to a not-so-beautiful aesthetic result.

What we look like….in the operating room

The surgical facelift is a procedure that must be carried out by a specialist Plastic Surgeon in a well-organised clinic and following a full pre-surgical assessment.  It is carried out under sedation (neuroleptic aesthesia) and local anaesthesia or, for those who wish, general anaesthesia.  It can be paired with other procedures, such as blepharoplasty (removal of bags from under the eyes).  An overnight stay at the clinic is usually recommended, as well as the avoidance of social events for seven to ten days due to the swelling. 

The results count

When a proper indication exists, in other words when there is sagging of the skin of the face and neck, usually at ages over 45-50 – in women as well as in men – the results of surgical facelift are excellent.  This procedure can also be limited – if one wishes – only to restoration of sagging in the neck.  Contraindications include certain illnesses and heavy smoking.

The facelift thus represents the leading surgical procedure, and the only one that effectively treats sagging of the skin of the face and neck.  So, may the king (of facelifts) assume his throne once again!

About GENESIS Hospital

GENESIS Hospital in Thessaloniki, Greece is an internationally-accredited  private women's hospital specialising in cosmetic surgery, general surgery, obstetrics and gynaecology. With an extensively equipped plastic surgery department and a team of renowned specialist plastic surgeons, the hospital provides a wide range of plastic and aesthetic procedures including facelift, neck lift, rhinoplasty, blepharoplasty, breast augmentation and liposuction.