For decades, the approach to correcting the signs of aging was a straightforward affair. When tissue laxity became too extreme to ignore, one would have a facelift. This procedure, as well, was straightforward. For a time, everyone got the same basic facelift, a surgery that required a long incision from the temple area to the ear and back toward the scalp. This technique may still be appropriate in some cases today, but it has been joined by several other techniques to make facelift treatment much more personalized.
Today, facelifts are not as cookie-cutter as they once were. Patients also have options well beyond the surgical technique to address the signs of aging. Dermal filler treatment is one of them. For obvious reasons, dermal fillers and other injectables (Hello, Botox!) have become known as potential facelift alternatives. There are ways that this way of thinking could backfire. Here, we discuss why facelift surgery and fillers may actually be better together for some people.
Facelift Advantages
A facelift works by manually lifting tissue in the deeper planes of facial anatomy into a higher position. Fat pads and muscle that have atrophied and fallen lower on the face are repositioned and secured to a more youthful height across the cheekbones. The results of a facelift include:
- Jowls are reduced or eliminated
- A double chin is reduced or eliminated
- Neck bands may be erased
- Deep creases on the lower face are softened or removed
- Skin on the cheeks and lower face looks tighter
Filler Advantages
There is a critical aspect of aging that cannot be addressed by facelift surgery: atrophy. With age and the decline of collagen, the fatty tissue in the midface gets depleted. Additionally, studies suggest that we even lose a bit of bone structure as we age. Repositioning tissue across the cheeks can reduce the effects of atrophy to a degree. Where the facelift leaves off, though, we have fillers to physically replenish fullness to the midface.
Today’s facelift procedures are a far cry from those available to our mothers. With personalized treatment including conservative technique and dermal fillers, a facelift can beautifully turn back the hands of time. To learn more, call our Chicago office at 312-266-6240.