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After a Facelift, Can Fat Gradually Disappear from the Path of Lift?

asked 1 year ago by Honolulu7527 in Honolulu, HI
Latest answer by Sam Naficy, MD
Question viewed 570 times
Tags: hollow, results

The facelift was two years ago. On one cheek, just below my cheekbone and along the path of the lift, a hollow channel has been inching toward the center of my face. The doctor has assured me that this was not a thread lift. The hollow is about 1.25" in width. The skin above it is taut and looks lifeless. The hollow keeps lengthening and it looks awful. What could be happening? And can anything be done to stop it and/or correct it?

23 answers to After a Facelift, Can Fat Gradually Disappear from the Path of Lift?

Post Facelift skin depressions and hollow cheek may require revisions

Depressions after a Facelift do not often appear for several weeks or months after the Facelift once the surgical swelling has resolved. Many factors can cause a visible depression on the cheek or a hollow cheek after Facelift surgery. Some factors are: A tight Cheek SMAS Suture in the deep tissues-this will usually go away with time as tissues relax The surgeon passing Facelift Scissors too close to the skin when undermining the cheek tissue resulting in damage to the fat... more

Brooke R. Seckel, MD
Boston Plastic Surgeon

www.drseckel.com

Fat loss after facelift. Preserving facial volume.

Old wisdom was: When in doubt, cut it out. New wisdom is: Fuller cheeks are what we seek. We preserve facial volume, at all costs when lifting faces. We even bring some fat from outside of he area, from the abdomen for instance, when we lift faces. Facelift technique should preserve volume because if it doesn't, the cheeks can become hollow for a ghostly look. This can become apparent even one or two years down the line. Fat transfer is the... more

Ritu Chopra, MD
Beverly Hills Plastic Surgeon

Face Lift, Mini Face Lift, The Palmer Celebrity Face Lift, Beverly Hills Face Lift

Not sure, from what you're describing it could be fat loss or a disruption to the underlying SMAS layer during the Face Lift. Either one could cause what you describe. You should go back to the plastic and cosmetic surgeon that did your Face Lift or you may want to get a second opinion.

Francis R. Palmer, III, MD
Beverly Hills Facial Plastic Surgeon

Loss of Fat after a facelift

It is difficult from your description to assess what is occuring. Photos would be helpful, however, I would discuss the issue with your surgeon and see what options are offered. Some patients may develop fat loss as a result of the aging process or due to the procedure. Some small intervention may be successful in correcting the problem.

Marc Schneider, MD
Fort Myers Plastic Surgeon

Possible Fat Loss From Lift

Patterns of a facelift vary among patients. Most commonly, facial fat diminishes with age, with or without a facelift. Facelifts do not increase the rate of fat loss. Dr. G

Mitchell F. Grasseschi, MD
Chicago Plastic Surgeon

Volume loss after Facelift?

I am not exactly sure what you mean by, “path of a lift”. My sense is that if fat is devascularized during surgery, it can melt away over the time; but often changes secondary to surgery in the face are more related to the pull of surgery on the tissues rather than fat melting. Fat grafts done during surgery can disappear (some fat loss after grafting is expected in most areas), but can be usually compensated for by over-grafting or perhaps saving some fat in a special... more

Robert Sigal, MD
Reston Plastic Surgeon

"Fat in face dissapearing"

I have not seen fat disappear from the path of a facelift, as we get older. Fat generally thins in the face. If you are asking about irregularity and a facelift, I would not think that it is due to fat gradually disappearing, but is more likely to be due to irregularity caused by the procedure.

George Weston, MD
Reston Plastic Surgeon

Hollowing after facelift

It appears that your hollowing may be related to the vector of pull on the underlying muscle or the amount of skin undermined. Regardless, this can usually be corrected by autologous fat transfer. This involves taking fat liposuctioned from a problem area to fill the hollowed area. Approximately half of the fat takes on the first procedure. I recommend that you discuss your options with your board certified plastic surgeon and discuss a suitable... more

Paul S. Gill, MD
Houston Plastic Surgeon

Facelift, Fat Loss, Aging, and out comes a skeletal appearance.

This is tough to assess from your photos. No fat should not diaappear. Sometimes the lift changes facial structure and reveals areas the ultimately would benefit from fat transfer which is easy to do. I suggest you discuss this with your surgeon and possibly one other ABPS surgeon and see what they think. This is the era of fat replacenment in the face and I do it routinely. Part of aging is fat loss. Part of aging is that we progressively... more

George Commons, MD
Palo Alto Plastic Surgeon

www.pacfps.com

Thin cheek fat after a face lift.

There are several possible explanations for what you are describing. But your surgeon would be the most qualified to answer this. Though it may be unclear to him as well. Regardless, from your description, it sounds like you could benefit from AFT (autologous fat transfer). That is when fat is taken from elsewhere in your body, refined and injected into the "hollow" you describe. Our current methods with fat transfer are quite good. Best of luck

Bernard Shuster, MD
Hollywood Plastic Surgeon

Voume Loss after Facelift

It would be helpful to know exactly what was done during the facelift - there are many alternative techniques. The most likely explanation is that you've lost some fat in the depressed area. This can be improved with fillers or lipo-transfer of your own fat.

Richard W. Fleming, MD
Beverly Hills Facial Plastic Surgeon

Loss of volume (hollow cheeks) after facelift?

Although a photo would have been helpful, it sounds as if you have had some fat re-absorption in this area. As mentioned, some doctors utilize liposuction in the cheek area and after the post-operative swelling has subsided, then an area that was too aggressively treated may become noticeable. It also could be related to just how the skin was re-positioned. If you need replacement of volume, then I would recommend either Scultra, which may take several injections, but is quite appropriate... more

William F. DeLuca Jr, MD
Albany Plastic Surgeon

www.delucaplasticsurgery.com

Volume lose after facelift

The lose of volume is common as we age. This can often be addressed at a facelift and sometimes augmented with either fat grafts or facial fillers.

Steven Wallach, MD
Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

Thinning out face after face lift

I don't have a specific explanation for this but could only guess that this could be resolution of swelling and/or atrophy of fat.

Otto Joseph Placik, MD
Chicago Plastic Surgeon

Fat loss after lift

It is very difficult to answer your question without seeing your pictures – but based on your description you may benefit from fat grafting

Sam Naficy, MD
Seattle Facial Plastic Surgeon

Fat loss after facelift can be corrected with Sculptra

It is hard to answer your question without photos, but often times patients do have fat loss after a facelift and can benefit from using Sculptra Aesthetic. Make sure you go to an experienced Sculptra injector. see video

Babak Azizzadeh, MD
Beverly Hills Facial Plastic Surgeon

Facial fat loss and facelifting

We have always noted that fuller faces tend to do better after facelifting because the fat hides may irregularities that occur as a result of or despite a good facelift. 15 years ago this would have been a bigger problem but using fillers, or your own fat, there is surely improvement to be had and the result salvaged. also, not to freak you out but some conditions can cause streaks of atrophy, Rombergs. scleroderma, for example. I don't think this is the case but you should not go it... more

Rafael C. Cabrera, MD
Boca Raton Plastic Surgeon

Can Fat Gradually Disappear from the Path of Lift

There is always some loss of subcutaneous fat when flaps are disected such as in a facelift procedure. There are a myriad of reasons why you may be having the problem, from technique to weight loss to general aging. The solution may also be somewhat complicated based on the underlying cause. To speculate here is not helpful so I would suggest you get a second opinion from a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon who will be able to determine the best resolution to your problem.

Paul Vitenas, Jr., MD
Houston Plastic Surgeon

Facelift Post-Op

As we age, we continue to lose fat in our face; it is not unusual that it may be unsymmetrical. This can be corrected by transferring fat from another part of the body to the affected area. Many of the transferred fat cells will stay and be permanent.

Michael Sullivan, MD
Columbus Facial Plastic Surgeon

Difficult problem

I have no idea what this is. I have personally never seen this in any of my patients and would therefore need to examine you to determine what the cause is and what the best remedy would be. It seems a bit strange. One option to consider that would correct it is fat grafting into the area that is hollow. Andrew C. Campbell, M.D. Board Certified Facial Plastic Surgeon

Andrew Campbell, MD
Milwaukee Facial Plastic Surgeon

www.campbellplastics.com

Volume loss after a facelift

Without a photo it is very hard to say. You might need fillers or maybe even have a condition like scleroderma where the fat can melt on one side of the face. Go back to your doctor and check on this.

Richard P. Rand, MD, FACS
Seattle Plastic Surgeon

Loss of volume after a facelift

Beneath your skin in this area is a layer of fatty fibrous tissue and then some small muscles and a large salivary gland. It is extremely unlikely that the gland or muscles are changing so any shrinking is most likely related to resorption of the fat. Reestablishing the volume with fat grafting is likely the best choice to help stop the process and improve the appearance. The Fat Grafting procedure could be done under local anesthesia as an outpatient.

Terrence Murphy, MD
Englewood Plastic Surgeon

Hollow Cheek after Facelift

There are many reasons why you may have developed this hollowness. Fat may have been removed as part of your surgeons facelift technique or post-surgical volume redistribution may be responsible. Some doctors perform even some liposuction within the lower cheeks. At the end, the particular reasons may be secondary and more of historical interest. Options include injectable dermal fillers or facial fat grafting for sculptural improvement. See an experienced facial cosmetic surgeon for... more