A facelift, or rhytidectomy, is a cosmetic surgery that reduces the signs of aging caused by skin laxity in the lower face by contouring and tightening the jawline and neck. While there are other facial rejuvenation options, the traditional facelift is the most comprehensive method of reducing or even eliminating sagging skin, jowls, and deep wrinkles like marionette lines.
In addition to the standard procedure, which primarily treats the lower face and neck, we specialize in the deep plane facelift, a highly technical version of the procedure that also includes work on the midface between the eyes and mouth to reduce drooping and visible folds in the cheek region.
The Glasgold Group are among the most experienced facial plastic surgeons in the world and have delivered proven results for our facelift New Jersey patients, time and time again with the deep-plane technique. Our 20 years of experience with this procedure have convinced us that it is the most natural and longest lasting facelift procedure.
* Each patient is unique and individual results may vary.
Facelift Consultation
Every facelift begins with a detailed consultation. During your initial consultation, you’ll be able to know about the benefits of a deep plane facelift. And carefully review the concerns you have with your current appearance and go over your goals for the end result. Your face will be evaluated to determine the best approach for your situation, and you will be advised on whether you can realistically get the results you want.
Once you’ve decided on the procedure that fits your needs, you’ll also go over the finer details like scheduling, payment, medical history, and pre-surgery precautions to minimize the risks of the procedure.
Facelift Procedure
THE DAY BEFORE FACELIFT
Go about your normal business and stay well-hydrated. All eating and drinking will need to stop at midnight. Before bed, remove all jewelry and take a shower with soap removing all traces of makeup or products.
Do not apply moisturizers afterward. See a step by step facelift here.
THE MORNING OF FACELIFT
Try to relax! Take another shower to remove any traces of sweat. Don’t apply any products, even deodorant.
Don’t eat or drink anything, but brushing your teeth is fine as long as you are careful not to swallow any water. Avoid wearing contact lenses, but glasses are fine. Wear loose-fitting garments that button or zip.
IN OFFICE FACELIFT
You’ll be taken to our AAAHC-certified operating suite where details of your procedure will be discussed one last time. After surgical markings are made on your face to ensure accurate incisions, you’ll be placed under local anesthesia. Since your safety is always a primary concern for us, we do not use general anesthesia. All of our surgeries are performed using conscious sedation, or “twilight sleep.”
Facelift Recovery
Our Deep Plane Facelifts are performed under twilight anesthesia as an outpatient procedure. After a brief stay in the recovery room to determine that you’re recovering normally, you’ll be able to go home. We do not use any drains or bandages, so you will be comfortable moving about and eating right after surgery.
The next day, we will examine you in our office. After you are examined, you may then shower, wash your hair, and get your face wet.
Following the facelift recovery process, you can expect to have swelling and bruising for the first week or two. Patients usually only report some discomfort after surgery and you will be given pain medication should you need it. Sleeping with your head elevated will also help. We recommend light activity for the first few days.
Sutures are removed within a week and makeup can be used as soon as the sutures are removed. Aerobic exercise can be started at one week. Most patients feel well enough to resume normal activities within 2-3 weeks, but full healing will take about 6 months.
Why Choose Glasgold Group
Facelift is a complex and custom procedure that requires a high level of skill and knowledge to perform properly. At the Glasgold Group, our board certified plastic surgeons have decades of experience while patients and peers alike respect them for the beautiful, natural-looking results they produce consistently. By choosing the Glasgold Group for your procedure, you can expect results of the highest caliber and the knowledge that your safety and satisfaction are top priorities.
- Dr. Robert Glasgold has an American Board of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery Certification.
- Dr. Robert Glasgold is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons.
- Dr. Robert Glasgold is a co-director of the Facial Plastic Surgery Fellowship Program of AAFPRS.
- Dr. Robert Glasgold has an American Board of Facial Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery Certification.
- Dr. Mark Glasgold is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons.
- Dr. Mark Glasgold is a co-director of the Facial Plastic Surgery Fellowship Program of AAFPRS.
- Dr. Mark Glasgold has an American Board of Facial Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery Certification.
- Dr. Mark Glasgold has an American Board of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Certification.
IS A DEEP PLANE FACELIFT THE RIGHT SURGERY FOR YOU?
FACELIFT SURGERY EXPERIENCES IN NEW JERSEY
Facelift FAQs
A facelift is an operation that addresses the area below the eyes. A facelift can be combined with other procedures such as Fat Transfer, Blepharoplasty (eyelid surgeries) or Browlift to improve the appearance of the eyes during the same surgery.
Your incisions will be carefully placed in creases and along the hairline to minimize visibility, but there will be some minor scars if you look closely. Most patients are pleased by how nearly invisible the scars end up after 6-12 months. You can improve your chances of minimal scarring by avoiding unprotected sun exposure, since that can darken scars.
Twilight anesthesia (conscious sedation) is used for all of our cosmetic procedures. The patient is safe, comfortable and pain free. There is a rapid and comfortable recovery. To learn more, watch this short video here featuring Dr. Mark Glasgold.
If you live near Princeton, NJ, The Glasgold Group offers facelift among its services and is conveniently located at 4390 US-1 #100, Princeton, NJ 08540.
There are a variety of skin treatments that can improve skin texture, a double chin and reduce fine lines, but no cream or laser treatment can eliminate sagging and deep wrinkles like a facelift can. Since a facelift actually removes excess skin, it provides much more dramatic result than any topical treatment.
We specialize in careful techniques to minimize recovery times. Most patients will feel comfortable with most daily life activities after a week or so. For more intimate settings such as dinner with friends, it will likely be a few weeks for the swelling and bruising to be gone enough to feel really comfortable.
A facelift is a permanent procedure; the repositioned tissues will stay in their new position. Almost all of our long term follow up patients feel that they look better 8 – 10 years after the surgery than they did before. That said, you will continue to age normally after your facelift and secondary facelifts are easily done starting about 10 years after the first.
You can preserve your new youthful look as long as possible with normal anti-aging measures like skin treatments, sunscreen, and proper nutrition and hydration. To learn more watch this short facelift video featuring Dr. Mark Glasgold.
It’s more a question of skin condition than chronological age. If you are suffering from facial sagging, marionette lines, jowls, or other problems of facial aging, you can benefit from a facelift regardless of your actual age.
Likewise, a facelift can be performed on anyone who is in good health regardless of age. We have examples of all types of patients from very early to a bit late in our photo gallery. To learn more watch this facial plastic surgery video with Dr. Mark Glasgold.
Just because your opting for surgery, doesn’t mean the healing process is painful! To learn more watch this short video featuring Dr. Mark Glasgold.
We strongly recommend that you stop smoking prior to a facelift. The better you take care of your overall health and the fewer medical problems you have including smoking and being overweight, the better you will heal from any major surgery.
Male facelifts are done essentially the same as in woman. Men are often concerned primarily with the neck and in these patients we do a procedure where all of the incisions are in the neck. We call it a direct neck and satisfaction in male patients with this more limited procedure is extremely high.
In the mid 30’s to early 40’s it is very common for woman to notice an early aging appearance but are unable to identify the specifics. It is almost always a result of volume loss particularly in the eye and cheek region. A fat transfer is an ideal procedure for restoring the volume and providing natural subtle improvement in an aged patient.
A natural appearing result from a facelift is standard in our practice. This is based on the type of facelift we do, the deep plane facelift, which produces much more natural appearing results than minilifts. It is also much better to do a facelift before there is significant hanging skin which makes a natural appearance much harder to achieve. You can see one woman’s journey through her facelift step by step on our website.
It is more important to apply sunscreen every few hours than worry about the SPF and just be smart about not risking a sunburn. We believe that a facelift should not interrupt activity too much and we start patients exercising 5 days after surgery. You can follow one of our patients through her procedure on our website.
The answer to this question is not about the surgery but about understanding the terminology. A facelift (full facelift) is an operation that will lift from the lower cheek down to the neck. In our practice a facelift always includes a full neck lift but does not lift the eyes or eyebrows.
There are really only two types of adequate facelifts; the deep plane facelift and the SMAS facelift, both of which provide excellent improvement of the neck, jawline and lower face. In our practice we only perform deep plane facelifts and we have extensive videos explaining why on our website.
A minilift (Mini Facelift) is really a completely different operation which limits the surgery to pulling on the skin and often produces short lived results. Unfortunately, it is common to give a sexy name like lifestyle lift to a minilift to give the impression that there is something unique or special that other surgeons don’t have.
Thread lifts, like minilifts, are attractive to patients because they seem to be a less invasive procedure but have the same problem, once the swelling is gone in a few months there is often very little improvement. You can often get realistic expectation for a procedure by going to a website like Realself.com, where patients will tell their own experiences with procedures and doctors.
EXCEPTIONAL RESULTS
View some of our past patients in our galleries.
OTHER PROCEDURES
PROCEDURES
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