A facelift is a surgical procedure to repair sagging, drooping, and wrinkled skin of the face and neck. It is performed to improve visible signs of aging, poor diet, or heredity; it is performed by removing excess fat, tightening underlying muscles, and redraping facial and neck skin.

Sagging or wrinkled skin occurs naturally with increasing age. Folds and fat deposits appear around the neck, and deep flexion creases form between the nose and mouth. The jawline grows "jowly" and slack. Heredity, poor diet, smoking, or obesity may contribute to early or severe skin problems.

A facelift can help repair some of the visible damage to skin, fat, and muscles and can restore a "younger" look. A facelift can be done alone or with nose reshaping, a forehead lift, or eyelid surgery.

While the patient is sleepy (sedated) and pain-free (local anesthesia) or deep asleep and pain-free (general anesthesia), the plastic surgeon makes incisions above the hairline at the temples, behind the earlobe, to the lower scalp.

The surgeon removes some of the fat tissue and loose skin, then stitches (sutures) the incisions closed. The fat tissue is called the SMAS layer and is the primary lifting portion of the facelift.

• reactions to medications
• problems breathing

• bleeding
• infection

• a pocket of blood under the skin (hematoma) that may require drainage
• injury to nerves that control facial muscles (usually temporary)

The patient should expect swelling, bruising, skin discoloration, tenderness, and numbness for 10 to 14 days. Most of the surgical scars are hidden in the hairline or the natural lines of the face and will fade over months. Sun exposure should be limited.