Cosmetic Facial Surgery Overview
Cosmetic facial surgery is a category that can include facelifts, chin or cheek implants, jaw surgery, otoplasty (cosmetic ear surgery), lip augmentation, and other procedures. Except in instances where injuries to the face require reconstructive surgery, cosmetic facial surgery is generally viewed as an elective procedure, not a medical necessity, so it's unlikely to be covered by most health insurance policies. Nevertheless, millions of people have access to these cosmetic procedures at affordable rates.
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Cosmetic facial surgery can involve procedures on a person's chin, cheek, jaw, ears, or lips. Facelifts are probably the best known form of cosmetic facial surgery, but cosmetic ear surgery, or otoplasty, is also popular, as are chin or cheek implants and lip augmentation.
Facelift surgery, or rhytidectomy, is a procedure designed to correct sagging facial skin, jowls, and/or extra neck skin. The patient receives general anesthesia or local anesthesia and IV sedation. Once the patient is sedated, the surgeon makes an incision, starting above the ear, curling around the ear and extending to the hairline at the bottom of the neck. Next, the surgeon separates the skin from the tissue beneath it and pulls the skin up to flatten any creases and wrinkles. The surgeon then removes any excess skin before suturing up the incision.
Facelift surgery can last several hours, but in most cases, the patient can go home the same day. Patients generally experience a couple weeks of bruising, soreness, swelling, and numbness, but they're usually back to work and performing their usual activities in about two weeks. The results of facelift surgery can last five to ten years.
Cosmetic earlift surgery, or otoplasty, is a procedure designed to make a patient's ears less prominent and, in some cases, more symmetrically. The patient receives local anesthesia and IV sedation or, when the patient is a child, general anesthesia. Once the patient is anesthetized, the surgeon makes an incision behind the ear, in the crease where the scalp meets the ear. Next, the surgeon removes or thins down excess cartilage and skin, repositions cartilage, and/or creates folds in the ear as needed. In most instances, the surgeon then places permanent sutures through the incision in the back of the ear to add missing folds or to keep the ear in the proper position.
Otoplasty usually lasts one to three hours, and in most cases, the patient is sent home that day. Patients typically experience bruising, swelling, and discomfort for a couple weeks, but they're usually back to work or school within a week. Otoplasty surgery results are permanent.
Chin and cheek implant surgery is intended to reshape and balance a patient's face. Typically, patients electing such surgery want to achieve more prominent chins, cheekbones, or jawlines. The patient receives local anesthesia and IV sedation or, in some cases, general anesthesia. Once the patient is sedated, the surgeon makes an incision based on where the implant is to be placed. In many cases, though, the incision can be made inside the mouth, which keeps the scars out of sight. The types of implants available include injectable, porous and solid materials as well as grafts taken from the patient's body.
Facial implant surgery typically lasts between one and two hours, and the patient is usually released that same day. Patients typically experience bruising, swelling, numbness, and difficulty in chewing for a couple weeks, but they're usually back to work within a week. The results of facial implant surgery are permanent.
Lip augmentation surgery is designed to give patients fuller, more prominent lips. For lip injections, the surgeon will apply a topical anesthesia, then inject materials directly into the lips. Injection options range from Artecoll, Autologen, collagen and Dermalogen to fascia, fat, HylaForm, and Restylane. This procedure is performed on an outpatient basis. For the most part, lip injection procedures offer temporary results, although using fat from the patient's body offers the possibility of a permanent result.
For lip implants, the patient receives a local anesthetic. The surgeon then makes an incision, usually on the inside of the patient's lip, and inserts the chosen filler material into the lip. Filler options include Alloderm; the patient's own fat, which is more easily reabsorbed by the patient's body; Gore-Tex, SoftForm and soft ePTFE, which are synthetic materials that the patient's body won't absorb; and, in extreme cases, tissue and skin from the inside flap of the patient's mouth.
Lip implant surgery can take up to two hours, and the patient usually goes home the same day. Patients typically experience bruising and swelling, and will require soft foods for a few days, but they can usually go back to work within two weeks. The results of facial implant surgery are permanent.
