Mini Lift: Q&A

Ask a Question

Crooked Smile After Mini Facelift and Chin Lipo

My mom is 8 days post op for mini facelift (lower portion of face) and chin lipo...my issue is that her smile is crooked right now. Is this permanent?

I am very worried and am hoping this is common and will go away. the dr assured her that he did not cut any nerves. please advise as she is very depressed about it. thank u. She never had a crooked smile before and I cant seem to find much about this. If it is common, how long does it take to go away and is there anything she can do to improve?

Tags:

chin face jaw line

Comment on this

8 Doctor Answers | Asked by pleazeeehelp in saint luis

Doctor Answers (8)
Community Comments (0)

Reassurance is the best medicine for crooked smiles after chin lipo/minilifts.

Reassurance is the best medicine for your mom after her mini lift/ chin liposuction since it resolves spontaneously in 6-12 weeks on its own in most cases. Sincerely, David Hansen,MD

David Hansen, MD

19 reviews

Beverly Hills Dermatologic Surgeon

www.DrDavidHansen.com

Crooked smile after facelift

It is fairly common for patients to have some asymmetry in their smile to begin with that you may or may not have noticed before surgery. Be that as it may, some asymmetry may be due to swelling and this may take some time to resolve.

Steven Wallach, MD

13 reviews

Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

Crooked Smile after the facelift

There several reasons why the smile may be asymmenric after the facelift surgery. Swelling is one of them. Most people have more swelling on one side, than on the other. As the swelling subsides, the smile may even out. Injury to the marginal mandibular nerve is another reason. Most likely it happens during liposuction. The nerve has been injures but not cut. It usually recovers in several weeks, and in some patients to recovery it may take 6-9 months... more

You might also like...

Real Stories

Very Happy with my Weekend Lift! - Munster, IN

I had a weekend lift feb 14th and very happy with the results . I have worked outside with...

Before + After Photos

View 173 Mini Lift photos

Face lift

Nerve weakness after face lift is most commonly temporary due to nerve "fatigue", rather than actually cutting the nerve. Wait up to 12 weeks and most probably will come back much sooner. I hope you plastic surgeon was a Board Certified PS. Then your chances of a major problem is much less.

Uneven smile after Facelift / Neck Liposuction

The smile is the result of a tug of war between two muscles that pull the corner of the mouth down (depressors) and several that pull the corners up. Sometimes the nerve (marginal mandibular nerve) powering the depressor muscle that pulls the corner of the mouth down is pulled on and as as result the patient has an unopposed, higher smile on the "bad" side. In the vast majority of cases this resolves in a few weeks.

Peter A. Aldea, MD

35 reviews

Memphis Plastic Surgeon

Crooked smile after a Facelift

Hi, It is very rare to have permanent weakness from a facelift. The facial nerve controls the movement of the face. The mandibular branch of the facial nerve controls the movement of the lower lip and part of the smile. This nerve is very close to the surface of the skin and can be pushed on during the facelift. This can weaken the nerve causing a temporary paralysis of the smile. This should start to resolve at 2 to 4 weeks after the surgery. It can take 6 months to a year to fully... more

Crooked Smile After Facelift is Usually Temporary

It can be very hard to handle this issue but tell your mom to hang in there. It keeps getting better every week and usually in six weeks it has improved significantly where other people do not notice it. She will continue to notice it longer as after surgery we tend to keep examining the site of surgery. What if it is permanent? In the rare case that it is permanent it can be balanced using botox and in rare cases certain surgeries are able to help a little as well. What should your mom... more

Crooked smile after face surgery

This is commonly associated with a nerve "bruise" (neuropraxia) and commonly returns within 2-3 weeks. Occasionally this can last longer and rarely is it permanent.

Doctors will not see your comments on their answers. If you'd like to follow up, please go here to ask another question.

Comments (0)

Ask a Question

These answers are for educational purposes and should not be relied upon as a substitute for medical advice you may receive from your physician. If you have a medical emergency, please call 911. These answers do not constitute or initiate a patient/doctor relationship.

Mini Lift: Q&A

Crooked Smile After Mini Facelift and Chin Lipo