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Facelift Surgery in Chicago

Facelift ChicagoFacelift surgery is the gold standard of facial rejuvenation and one of the most popular plastic surgery procedures performed today. It is well known for its ability to diminish noticeable signs of aging and give patients a more youthful and attractive expression!

Dr. Robert Galiano is a Chicago facelift surgeon frequently sought after for his beautiful results and friendly demeanor. He will customize your facelift procedure to your specific area or areas of concern and help you look years younger. Dr. Galiano would be happy to discuss your facelift options (as well as other procedures that may benefit you) during an in-person consultation.

Facelift Candidates

You may be a suitable candidate for facelift if you are bothered by any of the following age-related concerns:

  • Sagging skin from the cheeks to the jawline
  • Jowls (i.e., sagging tissue along the jawline)
  • Volume loss or displaced fat in the cheek area
  • Wrinkles and creases around the nose and mouth
  • Loose or sagging neck skin
  • Horizontal wrinkles on the neck

You should be in good physical health, not smoke and not have any medical disorders that could impair your body’s ability to heal properly. You should have specific, reasonable goals of surgery and be able to communicate them clearly to Dr. Galiano.

During your consultation with Dr. Galiano, he will perform a physical examination of your facial skin and features, noting skin laxity, wrinkles and jowling. He will ask you to describe what you hope to achieve from surgery and will develop a plan of treatment to address your concerns.

The Facelift Procedure, Step by Step

Facelift is usually performed on an outpatient basis under anesthesia.

Chicago Natural Looking FaceliftDr. Galiano begins by creating an incision at the temples that extends along the hairline and in front of the ear, ending behind the earlobe. Through the incision, he separates the skin from the underlying muscle and tissue.

Dr. Galiano then modifies the superficial musculo-aponeurotic system (SMAS), or deeper facial layer. He can reposition fat and lift and tighten the tissue and muscle as needed to recreate more youthful-looking facial contours.

When Dr. Galiano is finished making the necessary modifications, he re-drapes the facial skin more tightly over the tissue and trims excess skin. He closes the incisions with small sutures.

Facelift Recovery

After facelift, you will receive specific instructions on caring for your incisions. You will also receive a prescription for medication to take to manage any discomfort. Swelling and bruising are common after facelift and will mostly subside after about two weeks. Any residual bruising can be concealed with cosmetics.

You should keep your head elevated as much as possible (even while sleeping) in the weeks following your surgery. Dr. Galiano will advise you as to when you can resume work, exercise and other normal activities, and see you regularly to ensure you are healing properly. Most people resume work within 10 to 14 days and can ease back into an exercise routine within three to four weeks.

You will see improvements from surgery almost immediately, and your facelift results will continue to improve as the bruising and swelling subsides.

Facelift FAQs

What are the benefits of facelift?

Although it is one of the oldest plastic surgery procedures, facelift still has few rivals when it comes to the goal of providing dramatic changes in the tone, texture, smoothness and integrity of facial skin. Over the decades the surgical technique has been significantly improved, allowing patients to achieve a more natural look with less inconvenience, downtime and scarring. By tightening skin and subdermal muscles, facelift eliminates wrinkles, fine lines, furrows and drooping skin. The improvement is especially noticeable along the jowls and jawline, but its benefits extend all the way to the cheeks and lower eyelids.

How long will the results of facelift last?

This is another benefit of facelift, one that patients especially prize. Unlike injectables and some other newer options, facelift is long-lasting, enduring 10 years or more. In addition to tightening skin, the procedure adds a degree of resiliency to the skin, slowing the pace of future sagging. Time and gravity will continue to impact facial tissue and structures, of course, but facelift resets the clock on this natural process.

The permanence of facelift depends in part on your own genetic inheritance; specifically, the relative laxity of your skin. Inflexible skin will droop and appear older sooner. Lifestyle choices will also have an effect. Smokers speed up the process of aging with each puff; and patients who spend excessive amounts of time in the sun without protective sunscreen will also see changes in the skin, including loss of natural texture and the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles and imperfections.

Facelift revisions tend to provide a revitalized look for about seven years; and patients who choose the so-called “mini facelift” may see a benefit of up to four years.

If I notice droopiness in a few years, will it be necessary to repeat the procedure?

Although patients sometimes do choose an additional facelift after a decade or so, there are alternatives to a repeat procedure. Many of these options are also very effective ways to “touch up” facelift after a few years, extending and magnifying the benefits of the surgery. Dermal fillers can smooth skin, build volume and stimulate your body’s production of collagen and elastin. Neuromodulators such as Botox relax facial muscles that may be producing lines and furrows. Laser skin resurfacing tightens skin, smoothing out wrinkles. And new radiofrequency (RF) energy treatments use a wider band of the electromagnetic spectrum to agitate subdermal layers, adding strength, tone and collagen to target areas.

How can I avoid an artificial-looking result, such as the “pulled” or “windswept” look?

Whenever a prospective patient has second thoughts about choosing facelift, it is usually because of the unnatural outcomes they have seen from celebrities who went too far with one or more procedures. The names we apply to this type of result are dryly humorous and sometimes derisive: “Open cockpit,” “pulled,” “windswept” and “done” all describe outcomes that can often be traced to a deficiency in the experience, judgment or artistry of the surgeon. That is why it is so important to choose a premier board-certified plastic surgeon who has performed thousands of procedures, and has a thick album of before-and-after case studies to prove it.

The best surgeons realize that it is essential to stretch not only facial skin, but also the subdermal muscles that animate the face. Without this harmony of technique, the result will in fact look “pulled.” Conversely, removing excessive amounts of tissue below the surface can produce a skeletal appearance. Dr. Galiano’s eye for balance and beauty, along with his extraordinary skill and judgment, are your assurance that your result will be at once subtle and dramatic, matching your expectations and amazing your friends.

To learn more about facelift and schedule your personal consultation with Chicago plastic surgeon Dr. Robert Galiano, please call (312) 926-4382, or request an appointment online today.

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