Valencia Facelift doctors

Although one shouldn't generalize and each patient is unique, forty does sound too young for a facelift.  There are some patients that have medical conditions causing premature loss of skin elasticity that may be good candidates for a facelift even at age 40.  Patients who have spent significant amounts of time under the sun, may have premature facial aging that a facelift may benefit.  Therefore, there are exceptions.  You mentioned several things that I feel a facelift does not address completely.  A facelift will improve the marionette lines, sagging of the jowls, loose neck skin, and platysma banding. I feel a facelift will only slightly improve the deep nasolabial grooves.  A facelift will not improve hollowing or sunken eyes.  There are many techniques that can help patients who are in quite "old enough" for a facelift.  Autologous fat grafting (when performed) in experienced hands can help fill the deep nasolabial folds and/or marionette lines.  This will be a more long-term result then some of the fillers such as Juvaderm.  Skin resurfacing can help with some fine lines and overall tightening of the skin.  This can be accomplished with chemical peels (TCA, Phenol) or lasers (Erbium, CO2).  Use of botox around the eyes, brows, and perioral areas can help as well.  The use of botox around the lower lip depressors may help soften marionette lines.  You should speak to your plastic surgeon to see if any of the above mentioned methods would be appropriate for you.  Will these techniques stop you from ever needing a facelift?  No.  The aging process still goes on, but it may delay the need for a facelift to a later age.

As with any surgery, there are several common side-effects including infection, bleeding, wound breakdown, and scar formation.  One specific complication that is potentially devastating in a facelift procedure is facial nerve injury leading to facial paralysis.  A permanent facial nerve injury resulting in a noticeable paralysis roughly occurs at a rate of 1%.  There are different types of facelift procedures ranging from skin tightening only to a deep-plane facelift.  The rate of injury to the facial nerve is more common in the deep-plane facelift procedures.  Therefore, it is critical if one is contemplating a facelift procedure, to consult with a board-certified plastic surgery and specifically ask what type of facelift would be the best in your specific case.  Other side-effects of a facelift include distortion of the earlobe, displacement of the side-burn, scarring along the hairline behind the ear, and numbness around the ear (possibly permanent).  A hematoma in the face is not treated like a hematoma in other types of surgeries.  Even a small amount of blood underneath the facelift skin flaps can result in loss of skin, poor cosmetic result, discoloration of the skin, and a lumpy feeling of the skin (even after the hematoma resolves.)  Therefore, minimizing a hematoma after a facelift and expeditious evacuation of the hematoma (commonly in the OR) are essential. 

Best wishes.