Neck Lift Surgery

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Neck Lift Surgery

Plastic surgical procedures have to be performed by plastic surgeons !

In older age-groups neck lift surgery is a popular aesthetic surgical intervention. This kind of procedure is usually recommended after the development of deeper wrinkles on the neck. Just drag your facial and neck skin back- and upward, and if You like the result, You are candidate for the operation. Aging of the skin is a physiological process. The amount of collagen and flexible filaments of the skin is decreasing, parallel to this the elasticity in the skin will decrease as well. The skin begins to loosen on the face and neck, the effect of the gravity will be more and more expressed. Because of the atrophy of the skin and the underlying tissue the skin will loosen and sag. This wrinkles which are physiologically presented, will be more deeper and new wrinkles will be presented. This process occurs in different ages in the different persons and progress by different velocity. Beyond the individual factors certain factors strongly influence and speed up the natural aging of the skin. This factors are the ethnic background, weather conditions ( number of sunny days, humidity, wind, temperature fluctuations ), excessive sunbathing, lifestyle habits ( excessive stress, excessive consumption of alcohol and nicotin, insufficient sleep, lack of relaxation ), certain diseases ( hepatic diseases, artherosclerosis, high blood pressure, diabetes, taking medication for a permanent period ). The more exposure of ultraviolet radiation the skin gets through the life, the bigger lesions of the skin will develop. These malformations are more visible on the face and neck. Because of these malformations You look more older than You really feel yourself.

By the neck lift the loosened, sagging and wrinkled skin will be tightened, and excess skin is removed. The final result can be seen after the cessation of the swelling. After the operation the face gets back its natural and youthful appearance. The skin on the face and neck will become again smooth and youthful. It is a natural expectation that women and men want to have tight skin on their faces and necks, thus their lines can remain youthful. Face and neck lift surgery give back the elasticity of the skin on the face and neck, the fullness of the middle face, thus enhance the youthful appearance and self-confidence.

WHO IS CANDIDATE FOR NECK LIFT SURGERY?

  • You look more older than You really feel yourself.
  • Deep wrinkles and folds on the face and on the neck.
  • The jawline softens into jowls, and beneath the chin, another chin or vertical folds appear at the front of the neck.
  • Loosened skin, wrinkles, vertical folds and fat deposits in the neck.

The neck and face lift surgery can help in all of these. Neck lift surgery can not correct all the expectations -sometimes unreal-, which were dreamt by the patients. We can not resolve everything with this procedure. On the one hand it has limits by the techniques of the operation, on the other hand just only those corrections can be performed which are fit to the harmony of the face. Neck lift surgery can not help to eliminate the wrinkles on the face. These malformations can be eliminated, but neck lift surgery has to be complemented with face lift and other procedures (wrinkle lifting, laser rejuvenation).

THE FIRST CONSULTATION

At the consultation we will discuss Your problems, expectations and desired outcome. We will talk about everything which is in connection with the facial and neck rejuvenation and important in the aspect of the procedure. We will examine the face, the neck, the shape of the head and the hairline border, and their proportions to each other. We will put attention to the genetic factors, which can influence the operational plan. We will draw attention to the asymmetry and the neural affection. We will check the quality of the facial and neck skin and the quality and quantity of the fat tissue. There is asymmetry which even can not be corrected with the well-performed facial and neck lift. We will give You some advices about those procedures, which can reconstruct the facial and neck appearance. These are usually performed together with the neck lift surgery: face lift, laser rejuvenation.

We will take some photographs – from different directions - about the present condition. The photographs allow the patients to examine and evaluate the face and the neck from different directions. If there are deeper wrinkles on the face too, the neck lift surgery by itself is not sufficient, other procedures can be necessary to be performed. The necessity of this we will decide together with the patient. We will show You the expected result of the operation in front of a mirror.

You will be asked about Your medical conditions, medical treatment, drug allergies, use of current medications and previous surgeries, procedures. It is very important to get accurate information about every medical conditions to plan the procedure with the best thoughtfulness. After the proper information the well-planned face and neck rejuvenation surgery will  ensure You the biggest satisfaction.

REVIEW ABOUT THE NECK LIFT SURGERY

THINGS TO DO BEFORE THE OPERATION

Before this face and neck rejuvenation procedure some examinations can be necessary to be performed: blood test, ECG, chest X - ray. With the results, the operation will be performed in the best security. If You smoke, take aspirin or other blood thinner medications, or any anti-inflammatory drugs or other medications, please let us know! This drugs can increase bleeding or can cause other interactions during the general anaesthesia.

THE PROCEDURE

Right before the procedure a thorough antiseptic hair wash is needed.

Neck lift surgery is often performed in general anaesthesia ( in special cases it can be performed in intravenous sedation or local anaesthesia ) with hospital background. For Your security during the surgical procedure which is performed in general anaesthesia we check Your heart rate, heart beat, blood pressure and blood oxygen level with monitors. For Your bigger security antibiotics are administerd during the procedure.

Formerly only the loosen skin was dissected from the basis, then after tightening the skin the excess skin was removed. Nowadays' modern technique involves not only the tightening of the loosen skin, but the tightening of the underlying thin muscle layer too, thus improving both the result and the durability. The skin of the neck and the underlying tissues are stretched in their physiological directions and positioned to restore the youthful appearance of the neck. The really deep wrinkles can not be removed by the procedure, but they can be improved by other additional techniques.

The operation usually involves the neck only, but it can be extended to the lower two-thirds of the face. Neck lift surgery does not contains the face lift, but in most of the cases it is extended with a face lift surgery. The best result can usually be expected from the simultaneous treatment of both the skin of the neck and the face. Face and neck lift surgery can also be combined with liposuction.

The type and direction of the incision of the neck lift is always planned uniquely. The least visible – so the most hidden – incision should be performed. The length and direction of the incision depends on the degree of the sagging of the skin. After the full recovery these incisions are almost invisible and stay in a hidden position. Most of the incisions are on the scalp and behind the ears. After the healing period the scars are covered with hair or can be hidden with make-up easily.

After neck lift surgery some blood oozing and oedema always occur, which can be removed from the surgical area by a drain. This will accelerate the healind process, and makes it safer too, and the postoperative pain is reduced. The drain is removed on the next day after the surgery.

After the operation the wounds are covered with gauze dressing and an elastic pressing bandage is put on.

THINGS TO DO AFTER THE OPERATION

It is recommended to spend the night in the hospital after the operation which was performed in general anaesthesia. If it was performed in local anaesthesia or intravenous sedation You can go home after the operation. After the neck and face lift surgery it is always suggested to relax and spare yourself with due foresight. The first 1 - 3 days after the operation can cause more inconvenience, but this is just a temporary problem which is caused by the oedema and stretching effect of the stitches. Postoperative discoloration of the surgical area and oedema are temporary and recover rapidly. Temporary asymmetry on the neck can occur, which is also regarded to the oedema and haematomas. These are self-limiting and disappear in 1-2 days. In really rare cases some remnant swelling and haematoma can remain for some weeks, but will also disappear permanently after. These are naturally accompanied by this kind of surgeries.

The stitches can be removed after 2 weeks, when the stretching has already loosened.

For some days following the surgery it is recommended to support the upper-body with pillows while sleeping, and to eat mushy food that can be chewed easily. On the first postoperative week, every activity that increases the blood-flow of the neck and the face is strictly forbidden. These are: forced exertion; any intense heat; hot, strongly spiced foods, and alcohol.

The special elastic bandage should be worn for 1-2 weeks. On the first 6 weeks after the neck lift every exhausting sport exercise, and physical activity should be avoided. Sunbathing and tanning salons are also forbidden during these weeks. After 10 days postoperatively washing the hair is allowed, and thin, moderate make-up can be applied that can cover the mild discoloration of the skin. Keep in mind that the make-up must not put on the scars. After this sensitive period the scars should be protected and treated with suncream for a long time.

After every plastic surgical procedure regular follow-ups are required, so are in case of neck lift surgery as well. The regularity of these follow-ups depends on the nature of the intervention, and the characteristics of the patient. During these check-ups on schedule the surgical area is examined and further tasks are discussed. Please keep in mind, if you have any problem or question, do not hesitate to contact us out of schedule!

NECK LIFT SURGERY RISKS AND COMPLICATIONS

If the operation is performed by a qualified plastic surgeon, the operation and the post-surgical recovery period will be without any unexpected episodes. The neck lift surgery as all other surgical procedures can have complications, even ideally. Besides the generally presented complications ( bleeding, infection, poor healing of incisions ) – which are very rare -, can occur some special complications because of the neck lift. Among the special complications the most severe is the dysfunction of the facial nerve, that can affect the mimicking of the face temporarily. The direct injury of the nerve (intersection) almost never occurs. In case of indirect injury, a temporary decrease in the nerve function can occur. This kind of dysfunction is temporary and resolve fast. Such an indirect injury can be caused by the high temperature in the neighboring tissues of the nerve following electrocoagulation. The compressing bandage can also lead to such a dysfunction. These cases heal in a few days, and normal function comes back. Insensitivity of the ear is a rare complication which takes short time and will disappear by itself.

With the most modern devices, materials and stitches which were inserted by the most friendliest techniques it can happen that the colour of the scar will be brisk and red, thick in touch and a little bit widened. This depends on mostly personal liability, thus it can have significant differences. This malformation decreases by the time, thus the scar will be thinner and its colour will lighten. If this does not occur, we remove the scar and treat the new scar with other special scar-treating methods.

In the neighboring areas of the incisions made on the scalp, the hair can become thin. This complication mostly occur in patients with originally thin hair. In these cases a minor scar correction can solve the problem.

The complications can be vanquished or revised with the appropriate treatments and procedures, thus they do not effect the final result of the operation or slightly influence it.

RESULT

The neck lift surgery tightens and makes the neck youthful.. In reasonable cases we can enhance the surgical result by other procedures ( face lift, wrinkle-filling, laser rejuvenation ). The neck and face lift surgery make women and men more self-confident and give them back their assurance. You have to know that the operational scars will pale and fade into their environment but never will be invisible.

The result of the neck lift surgery lasts long, but not forever. Gravity and changes in the flexibility and water - content of the tissues, other alterations with aging have effect on the quality and quantity of the facial and neck tissues. These influence the appearance. If the years let sign on the neck and on the face, other neck and facial rejuvenation procedures can be necessary to be performed, which can reconstruct these signs.