How much does a Lifestyle Lift cost?

It can end-up costing a great deal more than a regular face lift!

By that I mean there have been a few instances when a Lifestyle lift has left significant scarring and earlobe deformity, which required additional surgery and scar revision. When all was set and done the patients ended up spending close to $20,000.

I agree with others' comments that you get what you pay for. There is a reason why Lifestyle lift users are less than half as likely to feel that the procedure was worth it.

As the popularity of cosmetic surgery has grown, so has the competition to attract more patients.  This has created price competition as well as a thriving market in medical tourism.  The expanded awareness has also spurred creativity in the marketing of "new" procedures designed to fill a certain price-point, which also can be marketed as "less-invasive" or "faster recovery" in order to appeal to patients who might be testing the waters of cosmetic surgery for the first time.

The Lifestyle Lift is one such procedure, marketed as a one-hour facelift, outpatient procedure.  It is essentially a short-scar, limited facelift.  Although under limited circumstances, this may provide an adequate improvement, for the majority of patients it is destined to fall short of expectations.

Most patients with significant signs of facial aging will require a more comprehensive diagnostic and therapeutic approach to achieve an aesthetically-pleasing facial rejuvenation.  The forehead and brow, upper and lower eyelids, mid-face cheek and jowls, and neck areas all should be evaluated. A harmonious improvement often requires treatment of all areas simultaneously, rather than a piecemeal approach. 

A limited incision facelift like the Lifestyle Lift cannot address all these areas, and therefore while there may be some apparent improvement initially (often largely due to the appearance of enhanced facial volume due to post-operative swelling), the improvement will not be long-lasting, and the areas where necessary improvements were neglected will become more obvious.

A beautiful facelift should preserve and restore a patient's natural and more youthful appearance, and should never leave a patient looking "not like themselves."

It can be tempting to consider a low-cost procedure with a quick recuperation that bills itself as equal to a "traditional" facelift, but the cosmetic surgery market now more than ever requires a "buyer beware" approach.  It is of no use to throw good money after bad, rather than making the correct purchasing decision in the first place.

Make sure you know the difference between apples and oranges.  Remember that a procedure that costs more now but provides a longer-lasting improvement is a better value than a cheaper procedure that won't hold up over time.

Goals

Think about what you are trying to achieve with a procedure.  A lifestyle lift is advertised as a 1 hour procedure performed under local anesthesia, designed to tighten your jowls and face.  A lifestyle lift (as advertised and promoted) alone will not contour a heavy neck.  More substantial procedures are required to address a heavy neck and will take quite a bit longer than an hour.  Would you like to sit still while awake for a 3-4 hour procedure?  Few people would.

Anesthesia

Is Anesthesia a bad thing?  If you are a brittle diabetic with coronary artery disease and chest pain, clearly Anesthesia is not for you.  If you are a healthy person who has received medical clearance under Anesthesia, ekg, and bloodwork, chances are you will do just fine.  Many surgeons prefer to do facelifts under monitored (ekg, oxygen stauration, and pulse rate monitor) IV sedation, which is a combination of propofol (an inducing agent), versed (short acting medication similar to valium), and fentanyl ( a synthetic form of narcotic).  This technique is very safe is very similar to what one receives during colonoscopy.   Ask yourself this question: Do you really want to be aware of what is going on during a procedure?  My impression is that for the vast majority of patients I have seen, Anesthesia is a blessing because it relieves anxiety and discomfort in a very safe fashion.

History

Facelift was 1st described in 1911 as a short incision procedure.  A lifestyle lift is a short incision facelift.  There are obviously reasons why more substantial procedures were developed. The rational is simple:  short incision facelifts are most appropriate for patients with minimal indications. Patients with severe skin laxity, a heavy neck, cervical obliquity, and/or severe jowls will require a more extended facelift procedure.

Marketing

When someone tells you they can deliver a result, dig a little deeper.  Are you being recruited for a procedure by a Board Certified Facial Plastic Surgeon or Plastic Surgeon or a marketing/sales representative?  Most ethical Board Certified Facial Plastic Surgeons or Plastic Surgeons will not provide guarantees for their work, because Medicine and Surgery have some degree of variability in outcomes. Likewise, most ethical Surgeons will not accept patients for a procedure if the patient has the wrong indications.  However, if you are being sold a procedure by a marketing/sales representative, can you be sure your indications are correct for the procedure?  Remember that it is your face.

Follow Up

Most Board Certified Facial Plastic Surgeons or Plastic Surgeons have a very vested interest in your outcome.  They are generally working to build or maintain an excellent reputation and hold a great deal of pride in their work.  The community will see their work over a period of years and only the strong survive. However, a Surgeon working for or freelancing for a company may not necessarily hold to this model.  Ask the Surgeon how long he has worked for and how long he intends to work for the company. It is unlikely (but not impossible) that most well qualified Board Certified Facial Plastic Surgeons or Plastic Surgeons will view an opportunity such as working for lifestyle lift as a career move.

Cost

Review all of the factors above first, then consider the cost.  A cheap facelift may not leave you more satisfied than seeing a Board Certified Facial Plastic Surgeon or Plastic Surgeon and spending a little more.

The most improtant question about the Lifestyle Lift is not the cost but whether or not it will give you the result you want and whether it will last as long as you are hoping.

It is a kind of "mini" facelift and because of that it usually cannot deliver as dramatic an improvement or one that lasts as long as a properly performed cheek and neck lift. This is especially true if you have a lot of loose skin and/or fat in the front of your neck, below your chin. The results of a Lifestyle Lift for these patients will be especially short lived and less impressive.

Make sure to read all the patient reviews of this procedure because there are so many who have not been satisfied.

Lifestyle Lift usually costs about $4,000 - 6,000, depending on whether or not you have any additional procedures, such as neck liposuction, upper and/or lower lids done at the same time. The price is usually similar to the price of a mini face lift.