FACELIFT PROCEDURE
Facelifts can either be performed in the office awake under local anesthesia (for individuals in good health), under deep sedation, or general anesthesia. For cases requiring deep sedation and general anesthesia, Dr. Steinsapir will perform surgery at the UCLA Ronald Regan Medical Center where he is on staff. Many patient can safely and comfortable have their facelift under light intravenous sedation in Dr. Steinsapir’s accredited office based surgery center. Following sedation or general anesthesia, an overnight stay at the surgery center, recovery facility, or attendance with a night nurse is recommended.
The average facelift procedure time is 3- 4 hours, with results that last upwards of 10 years. Once the initial incisions are made, various degrees of undermining of the skin are performed, and the deeper layers of the face are “lifted.” Dr. Steinsapir then separates the skin and muscles of the face from the deeper facial tissues and carefully removes any excess skin. For patients with surplus facial fat, Dr. Steinsapir utilizes open liposculpture techniques to safely remove this fat. In some cases, Dr. Steinsapir will reshape the skin and muscle tissues. As a result, tightening the underlying musculature either with the skin, or separately. After the tightening and/or removal of excess skin, the skin is re-draped and sutured and stapled in place.
FACE LIFT RECOVERY
Following your facelift surgery, Dr. Steinsapir will apply a dressing to protect the entire area where the incisions have been made. Patients typically experience only minimal discomfort after surgery, and any pain can be managed with either over-the-counter or prescription pain medications. Some individuals may experience moderate swelling of the eyelids and other areas.
The post-surgical recovery period can range from 2-7 weeks, depending on the specific surgical techniques employed during the procedure. However, most of our patients find that after about 10 days they are sufficiently healed to resume social activities.