Facelift Disproportionately Fat Face?

I have what I'd consider a very disproportionately fat face. I'm only 33 and thin yet the corners of my mouth are always turned down along with "marionette" lines. And my lower face is heavy. I have the puffy swollen cheek look of someone who just had dental surgery. When I pull the lower cheek skin back toward my ear it looks so much better. I know it's impossible to know for certain without a picture, but am I describing something that requires a Facelift to fix?

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21 Doctor Answers | Asked by ccc in midwest

Doctor Answers (21)
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Facial Contouring or Facelift

Though you are "young for a Facelift," it is only in the sense that we think of Facelift as an operation to improve aging changes. With the many techniques for facial contouring that have evolved into routine "tools" for plastic surgeons, there is a great likelihood you can achieve the improvements you seek. In my own practice, I have had young patients for whom facial contouring procedures proved very gratifying. Without careful examination, it... more

Facelift for a Disproportionate "Fat Face"

It is usually not appropriate to do a facelift procedure on a thirty-three year old patient. If the problem is truly a disproportionate fat face, liposuction could be considered an option in the neck area however, I highly discourage liposuction to the face. Facial fat is very important and it is lost naturally as we age. Therefore, I do not recommend liposuction or removal of fat to the face and I do not recommend a facelift for the reason of facial fat only.

Rod J. Rohrich, MD

10 reviews

Dallas Plastic Surgeon

Chubby cheeks

Fullness in your lower cheeks is a very common trait that is quite difficult to correct completely, however improvement can be made surgically. Without seeing your photos, I'll answer the question in general terms. You are very young to have a facelift, but assuming this is what you're interested in exploring I'm going to address to the question of what surgical option is most likely to be effective. There are few surgeon's that resect Bichat's fat pad during a facelift since it is in a... more

Facelift at Age 33

The majority of patients seeking Facelift are age 50 and older. A person in their 30's is generally not a candidate for a variety of reasons, but most importantly because the aging changes that can be addressed by Facelift are not present. Secondly, Facelift is not usually considered a "facial slimming" procedure. What would be most valuable to you would be a consultation with a Board Certified facial Plastic Surgeon or Plastic surgeon in your area. ... more

Inventory your best facial features

Scan your face and identify your best features, just as you have the areas of dissatifaction, then look at your parents' faces, which will give you an idea of how you will age. As a generality, facial aging either occurs like a deflated beach ball or fat accumulation. The marionette's lines can be addressed with HA (hyaluronic acid) augmentation, the puffy cheeks with judicious Smart Lipo and the relative skin laxity with good skin care and/or make-up. ... more

Lavinia Chong, MD

22 reviews

Orange County Plastic Surgeon

www.chongmd.com

Facelift at 33

Iit is unlikely that at 33 you need a facelift. Again, photos would be great to see to offer a suggestion.

Steven Wallach, MD

12 reviews

Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

Facelift for 33 Year Old Bottom Heavy Face

It is difficult to asses you without pictures but most likely you would not be a candidate for a facelift. First of all, patients who complain of excess "fat" in face or neck or any other portion of body should use diet and exercise as means of addressing. In some cases, neck and facial fat is resistant to changes here despite making an admirable effort in slimming down. Facial liposuction is typically a bad idea in a face because it can leave subtle... more

Facelift for a young cheeky patient

What you are describing is tough. If it were possible to lose some weight, this might be the best solution of all. If not, a facelift might actually be a consideration. A photo would help but please visit some excellent plastic surgeons or facial plastic surgeons and get some first hand thoughts.

Buccal fat pad removal may be a better option

A facelift is not going to fix disproportionate fat in the face. You may consider buccal fat pad removal (cheek reduction) to achieve the look you want. Make sure that your height/weight proportion is adequate and you are not overweight before embarking on any of these procedures.

Possibly

Descent of the cheek tissues occurs with aging but aging is different for everyone. Depending on your genes your tissues may not have the resilience to the effects of aging and gravity as others may have. What you are describing is the normal aging process just in a younger patient. Although this may be corrected by a facelift procedure I wouldn't recommend that at your age. Many good things can be done with fillers to improve the contour of your mouth and marionette lines. If you get... more