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What is the Difference Between a Mini Facelift and a Modified Facelift?

I have recently made an appointment for a mini facelift. My friend is going to a different doctor for a modified facelift. She says a mini only involves the skin and lasts only three years whereas the modified involves underlying muscle and lasts 10-15 years. Is this true?

Asked 28 months ago by Janice1947 in Tucson, Arizona

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face comparison

Facelift: Choose the Surgeon, not the Facelift "Name"

As others have pointed out on this topic, most qualified Facelift surgeons offer a range of Facelift procedures based on the individual needs of the patient. Likewise, most surgeons will offer some variation on the technique when compared to another surgeon. The truth is, you can get great results with a variety of different techniques. Most surgeons will offer you a procedure that suits your needs and which works well in his/her hands. That having been said, in most circumstances a ... more

Doctor's Website

Stephen Prendiville, MD

Fort Myers Facial Plastic Surgeon

Mini facelift

In the past, most surgeries for which you would see a cosmetic surgeon would likely be called the same thing for the same procedure. Surgeons are now using terminology that is not standardized and is confusing for patients and colleagues alike and is mostly used for marketing rather than really providing any new surgical advantages. In the case of the facelift, the mini facelift procedure generally involves a relatively small amount of skin elevation in front of the ear, and suture... more

Philip S. Schoenfeld, MD

Chevy Chase Facial Plastic Surgeon

Difference between MINI facelift and MODIFIED facelift

Regarding : "She says a mini only involves the skin and lasts only three years whereas the modified involves underlying muscle and lasts 10-15 years" You and your friend, like thousands of others, have fallen prey to the cheesy marketing of plastic surgical procedures. Because of the poster children for REAL "facelifts" have unfortunately been the wind-swept, pulled look shown by the likes of Mrs. B. Ford, Mary Tyler Moore, etc - many plastic surgeons and plastic... more

Peter A. Aldea, MD

Memphis Plastic Surgeon

ASPS

Minifacelift and Modified Facelift

A common question is what is the difference between one lift and another. The most important factor in choosing a lift is to choose the right surgeon. He/she will help determine what procedure they view as the best option for you and your aesthetic goals. Lifts can differ dramatically from one surgeon to another. Differences in lifts can be the incision length and size (not shorter incision does not equate to better scar) and what is actually being lifted.... more

Anil R. Shah, MD

Chicago Facial Plastic Surgeon

Mini vs Modified Facelifts

A mini lift will give mini results. It is best to wait until there are enough aging issues before embarking on facial aesthetic surgery such as a facelift. The goal for a comprehensive face/neck lift is to address jowls, tighten up loose skin in the neck, remove the anterior platysmal bands, and removal of fat underneath the neck above and below the platysma muscle, while leaving no tension on the skin. This gives the patient a full facial rejuvenation. However, with a mini lift you are... more

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William Portuese, MD

Seattle Facial Plastic Surgeon

Mini Facelift & Modified Facelift

A facelift, in and of itself, is a misnomer. In general, a facelift refers to redraping of the skin and soft tissues of the face, jowl/jawline and neck. “Lift” is inaccurate and that the face/neck rejuvenation surgical procedure should be an anatomical redraping procedure and not a true “lift”. The type of procedure performed is usually determined by three main factors 1. findings that each individual patient presents 2. skill level of the surgeon 3. philosophy of... more

Sigmund L. Sattenspiel, MD

Freehold Facial Plastic Surgeon

Mini facelift

Generally, a mini facelift usually is associated with skin tightening only and a minimal amount of time of surgery. A modified facelift takes longer in time, addressing the skin, fat and muscles of the face. The expertise of the plastic surgeon determines which type of surgery suits your individual needs. The soft tissue laxity, skin damage and loss of facial volume is most important in choosing facial rejuvenation surgery. Be careful of named facelift procedures. Ask more specifics about... more

Andrew Turk, MD

Naples Plastic Surgeon

ASAPS ASPS

Pull back the curtain on the Wizard of OZ

Hi Janice, You have gotten great advice here. My advice would be to keep doing research and then sit down with the your Surgeon and have a very informed discussion with them about what specific type of facelift they are proposing and why they feel it would be the best thing for your anatomy. Also best to speak with Surgeons who offer the whole range of facelifts currently available to today's patient - you don't want to find yourself pigeon holed into the only procedure they offer or are... more

Kamran Jafri, MD

New York Facial Plastic Surgeon

A mini is a modified

Janice, A mini facelift is a modification of a full facelift. There are many techniques and forms of facelift surgery, some of which involve skin only, some of which involve the skin and muscle layer and some of which involve the skin, muscle and deeper tissues. There is no standard terminology classifying any of these different techniques, so a modified facelift may be a mini facelift and a mini facelift may be a modified facelift. It really depends on your surgeons use of the... more

Kenneth R. Francis, MD

Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

ASAPS ASPS

The facelift nomenclature can be difficult to deal with

Unfortunately, in this day and time, with heavy marketing influences, the actual definition of a facelift is hard to understand. There are many different names that people use or that a particular sugeon may tout as being better than all the rest, but this simply is not true. In general, your results will boil down to the the experience of the surgeon and the smoothness of the operation. There should be no facelift procedure that deals only with the skin. A minifacelift does remove some... more

Doctor's Website

Andrew Miller, MD

Edison Facial Plastic Surgeon

Mini, modified, full facelift can be confusing

There are many labels applied to facelift such as mini, modified, full, soft, S lift, short scar, limited incision, etc. The way the label is applied, or what it actually means can differ between one practice and another. Comparison can become difficult and confusing when a consultation is made with several surgeons. What is 'included' in the procedure suggested may be more or less even though the term mini is applied as there is no clear standard. In our practice we view facelift as a... more

Peter E. Johnson, MD

Des Plaines Plastic Surgeon

ASAPS ASPS

Different types of facelifts

This is a great question as there are many types of facelifts. The mini-facelift usually only involves removal of a small amount of skin and the results may not last as long as you'd like. A regular or modified facelift can lift the cheeks and remove excess skin of the face and neck. This will most likely last a lot longer. However, no matter what type of facelift you choose to undergo, make sure you really interview your surgeon to find out exactly what he/she will be doing, look at... more

Jeffrey E. Schreiber, MD

Baltimore Plastic Surgeon

ASPS

I prefer a MACS-Lift, short-scar Face Lift for minimally invasive facial rejuvenation.

The outcome of your facelift will largely be determined by the expertise of your surgeon. Rather than choosing a particular operation, you should choose a board-certified surgeon experienced in the art of face lifting. You should view many favorable photos before moving forward. I prefer the MACS-Lift since there's a small scar, most patients are good candidates, and downtime is minimal. Also, it's my opinion that there is less potential for complications with this technique. I have... more

Eric M. Joseph, MD

West Orange Facial Plastic Surgeon

Mini vs Modified vs Etc Facelifts

Of all the procedures plastic surgeons perform the facelift has more modifications than any other procedure. The reason is that we are searching for the most amount of facial rejuvenation with the least amount of surgery. With that said many names have been given to each different modification. But none of that matters. What does matter is what exactly is done during surgery. To achieve a lasting facelift the SMAS must be addressed. This can be done by either plication, elevation and... more

Christopher L. Hess, MD

Fairfax Plastic Surgeon

ASPS

Mini v'ersus Modified facelift.

These are extremely non-specific as well as non-scientific terms that are used as labels but do not specifically refer to any identifiable procedure. Therefore, it is quite difficult to provide you with any information about the difference between a mini and a modificed facelift.

Otto Joseph Placik, MD

Chicago Plastic Surgeon

ASAPS ASPS

Difference in “Mini” and “Modified” Face Lift

Unfortunately, now there is no way to know exactly what a procedure is until you ask specifically about it. A “Mini Facelift” used to be a very limited type of facelift that gave minimal results and did not last. Now, there are very good procedures that use smaller incisions and less cutting than the “traditional” face lifts, but produce equal or better results that last and have faster recovery. The marketplace has become so crowded with surgeons (many with little or... more

Robert T. Buchanan, MD

Highlands Plastic Surgeon

ASAPS ASPS

Facelift - what's in a name??

There are so many versions of facelifting that you couldn't name them all. On top of that, every surgeon does the operation differently. In general though, the "mini" lifts last a mini length of time and give a mini result. Make sure the surgeon you choose has lots of photos of results of their own that you would like for yourself.

Richard P. Rand, MD, FACS

Seattle Plastic Surgeon

ASAPS ASPS

There is no standard for mini facelifts

Unfortunately, the aesthetic surgery community has not developed agreed upon standards for the term facelift or "mini-facelift". The result has been many different companies and individuals marketing their "unique version" of a procedure that may or may not be beneficial to patients in the long term. At The Maas Clinic, minilifts come in two varieties -- the mini neck lift and the mini facelift. The former addresses neck laxity and skin redundancy and the later addresses... more

Corey S. Maas, MD

San Francisco Facial Plastic Surgeon

Mini, modified, quick, life-something lift are different names for a facelift of sorts

I know my answer is confusing. Basically, what one surgeon calls a mini-lift another calls a modified lift etc. The key to a facelift is to elevate the skin off the underlying muscle called the SMAS. Then this SMAS layer is lifted upward to give a longer lasting result. I agree that a skin only facelift doesn't last. However, my personal interpretation of a mini-lift still involves lifting the SMAS, only not as far or aggressively as I would for someone who needs more lifting. For patients... more

Steven J. Pearlman, MD

New York Facial Plastic Surgeon

Mini facelift

Hi, It is true that different surgeons have different meanings for the same word. Any facelift procedure, whether a mini, modified or full facelift should involve tightening of the SMAS or platysma muscle. This ensures some longevity of the procedure. No facelifts should be done as "skin only" -- this will leave stretch marks at the incision site and not last long at all. Also, the surgeon should have patient examples to show you of the different procedures. You should also talk... more

Doctor's Website

Oleh Slupchynskyj, MD

New York Facial Plastic Surgeon

You say tomato I say tomato

One surgeon's minilift is another's modified lift is another surgeon's trademarked catchy name lift. Every surgeon has some subtle differences in how they perform facelifts, you can call it what you want... weekend lift, s-lift, etc. There have been multiple studies on trying to show the advantage of one technique over another. I think what is important for you to see is that surgeon's results. Generally speaking I think what is more important then if you have a 2-3cm longer incision versus... more

Samson Lee, MD

Seattle Facial Plastic Surgeon

Mini facelift vs Modified facelift

There are many names for facelift operations that are less aggressive or less dramatic than the standard SMAS lift or the deep plane lift. Terminology such as mini lift or modified lift is non scientific and can be misleading. The only way to know what the procedure involves, is to ask the person performing it. In general, when only the skin is pulled, the results are short lasting. When the underlying muscle or fascia layer is tightened, facelift results are longer lasting. The extent of... more

Maurice M. Khosh, MD

New York Facial Plastic Surgeon

Minifacelift Has Many Names

Modified facelift is another name for a mini facelift. For you as a smart consumer you should only concentrate on getting a good and safe facelift. Leave the terminology alone. Once you have accepted this fact it will be easier for your surgeon to tell you what will work best for you. Regards