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Is Botox an Option for Bands Showing After Necklift?

asked 7 months ago by saralaurie in
Latest answer by Ronald Shelton, MD
Question viewed 382 times
Tags: 4 months post-op, candidate, neck bands

I had a necklift with platysmaplasty 4 mos ago. I think that maybe I had too much lipo just under chin, because when my head is tilted back, very small bands show and pull, and a larger band shows and creates a dent. What is the remedy for this? Is botox on these bands an option?

15 answers to Is Botox an Option for Bands Showing After Necklift?

Botox for bands showing after necklift

Botox is certainly an option to inject into the anterior platysmal bands to relax and soften them for 4-6 months. This prevents the bands from regrowing together if they were transected at the time of the surgery.

William Portuese, MD
Seattle Facial Plastic Surgeon

PLATYSMAL BANDS

When a Platysmaplasty is performed the muscle bands in the neck are sutured together. On occasion this may create a single band in the midline. If this occurs Botox may help to alleviate their appearance until things are completely healed. This is definitely worth a try.

Todd B. Koch, MD
Buffalo Plastic Surgeon

Neck bands following necklift surgery

Your neck bands are likely due to several issues. If they are prominent, Botox or Dysport is an excellent way to relax these neck bands as they are likely due to over active and prominent platysma muscles. Aggressive liposuction of the neck, especially in cases of removal of fat from below the platysma muscle during platysmaplasty and necklift can lead to a hollowed out appearance beneath the chin. The platysma bands can become exceptionally prominent in this... more

Philip S. Schoenfeld, MD
Chevy Chase Facial Plastic Surgeon

Botox works for temporary improvement of neck bands after facelift

Neck bands, which appear as two folds of skin beginning under the chin and extending toward the chest, are caused by a sagging muscle (called the platysma.) Botox can be helpful in improving those but only works for a few months. Plastic surgeons debate whether to sew the bands together when doing a facelift to prevent them from recurring; my preference is most often to do it.

Richard Baxter, MD
Seattle Plastic Surgeon

Botox for neck bands

Using botox to treat neck bands can work if the bands are appearing due to overactivity of the muscle but usually requires a reasonable dose of Botox. The small bands you are describing when you tilt your head back are not uncommon after a platysmaplasty if part of the muscle has been released or cut and may just be some scar tissue. At four months I might give it some more time to see if it improves on its own otherwise you can try some Botox to try and soften the appearance. more

Navinderdeep S. Nijher, MD
Ocala Plastic Surgeon

ocalaplasticsurgery.com

Platysmal Bands After a Necklift

Liposuction in the neck may expose the platsymal muscles so that they will be apparent when you engage the muscles. The intervening fat between the muscle and skin was thinned during the liposuction so you can now see more of the action of the muscle through the skin. At 4 months, you may see more healing. I have seen that suction-massage machines such as the Vela-Smooth or TriActive actually smooth the liposuction result and may cause an improvement to the neck area... more

Edward Szachowicz, MD, PhD
Minneapolis Facial Plastic Surgeon

Is Botox an Option for Bands Showing After Necklift?

Maybe, but the bands may be the resuklt of how the Platysma muscle was sewn together, scarring or excess fat removal during the Neck Lift. If that is the case, the Botox will not do much to improve the look of the bands and dents, IMHO. Botox is easy enough to try, so why not do it and see what happens.

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

Plastysma bands

Sometimes platysma bands are more prominent after liposuction of the neck as it is thinned out. Botox may help with those bands. AN exam is key to evaluate this.

Steven Wallach, MD
Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

Not all neck bands improve after Botox injections.

Botox injections may improve the appearance of muscular neck bands, typically in patients under 50. Even in the best cases, Botox treatments for platysmal banding may be unpredictable. If you're seeing irregular bands neck when you tilt your head back, this may be from scar tissue rather than muscle bands. You should bring your concerns to your surgeon, or consider getting a second opinion from an experienced facelift surgeon. I hope this is helpful for you. Dr. Joseph more

Eric M. Joseph, MD
West Orange Facial Plastic Surgeon

Platysmal bands that are present in the neck after facelift surgery can be improved with Botox injections into the Platysma

Muscle. In the course of treating the neck in a facelift or necklift, fat is usually trimmed between the muscle and skin. This can leave a "band" of the platysma muscle in the neck which is visible after the swelling from the surgery subsides. I like to cut back the muscle in its mid portion in the neck to prevent the banding, and suture the remaining muscle on each side to itself to prevent this problem and give a smooth contour to the neck. If there are... more

Michael H. Rosenberg, MD
White Plains Plastic Surgeon

A photo would be helpful here.

We have a saying in surgery that the enemy of good is better. If your neck contour is not to your liking, it is probably best to wait 6-12 months before committing yourself to a revision which will very much feel like getting the facelift over again. Botox is a reasonable alternative. It has the potential to soften those cords.

Kenneth D. Steinsapir, MD
Los Angeles Oculoplastic Surgeon

Botox works for neck bands

If the bands that you can see are due to the Platysma muscle in the neck, Botox can be an effective treatment for them. It is possible that you have not completely healed from your surgery and some of these bands may improve as everything softens and the tissue is back to normal. If they are still present in a couple of months, I would talk to your surgeon again. Botox may be a good temporizing measure for now.

James McMahan, MD
Columbus Plastic Surgeon

Is Botox an Option for Neck Bands

Botox is a GREAT temporary solution for softening and smoothing the visibility of the (Platysma Muscle) pillars or bands in mild cases in women who are not ready for a Neck lift. In your case you may be referring to a case where too much fat was removed from the neck exposing the muscle AND it is potentially complicated by scar tissue. If the bands worsen when you tilt your head back and bite hard (as in shaving), this could be improved with Botox. Find an EXPERIENCED Botox doctor to help... more

Peter A. Aldea, MD
Memphis Plastic Surgeon

Botox works for neck bands

Botox or Dysport will work well to treat the muscle bands of the neck. This can be done before or after surgery and will help to relax the skin. Frequently, we see patients after neck surgery and can help them with Botox or lasers to tighen the skin. These take several treatments and can work well for this area.

Kenneth Beer, MD
Palm Beach Dermatologic Surgeon

www.palmbeachcosmetic.com

Botox for neck bands after facelift or ultherapy for skin tightening

See your surgeon to evaluate your condition. If they agree they are neck bands, and further surgey won't improve them, then you could consider botox for these muscle bands but the result only lasts several months and has to be repeated. If however, these are longitudinal skin creases which are often produced after neck liposuction and appear fine (without any component of muscle bands) then possibly Ulthera can help smoothen the result. see video