Persistent Pain a Year and Half After Face Lift

I had a Face Lift surgery performed 1.5 years ago. During three post-op visits to my surgeon, I addressed the issue of tingling in the right side of my face (the area closest to my ear and upper neck). Even the slightest touch to that area feels like needles pricking my skin. My surgeon told me that the nerves are taking a while to reattach and that in time all will heal. However, the tingling feeling has never gone away. I even reflexively pull away and wince when my baby touches me in that area. Since I have mentioned this numerous times to the same physician, I'm looking for additional opinions. Thank you for your consideration.

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21 Doctor Answers | Asked by AnnChloe in Seattle, WA

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Pain After Facelift

I am very sorry to hear of your pain. An injury to a sensory nerve (the Greater Auricular Nerve is the most typical) is possible during Facelift. Although the painful sensations usually resolve with time, at this point, try the following: sensory re-education: stroke the area of tenderness as much as you can reasonably tolerate. This can desensitize the nerve. steroid injection may reduce nerve irritation massage medication: there are some specialized... more

Tingling after plastic surgery

Dysesthesia, or an unpleasant sensation occurring this long after surgery may warrant further treatment. Is there scarring or tethering that is causing the problem? Usually nerve pains such as this go away shortly after surgery with massage and desensitization therapies. Patients are often surprised to find out that massage, though unpleasant at first, can often reduce or eliminate this type of nerve pain. Instinctively, the patient protects the area, but this just makes the problem worse... more

Pain after facelifting

Depending on the nature and location of the pain, it may be worth re-elevating the skin (flap). This has been reported to allow the nervers to re-innervate the skin. While this isnt definitive, it is a simple enough thing to try to relieve your symptoms as this isnt typical.

Jon E. Mendelsohn, MD

10 reviews

Cincinnati Facial Plastic Surgeon

www.351face.com

Persisting pain after face lift may be a neuroma

Sounds like you may be describing a neuroma. When nerve endings try and re-estable connections, they sometimes don't find the right connections. This then develops into a small ball of nerve endings which can be quite painful, even at the slightest touch. This can usually be corrected with additional surgery where this ball of nerve ending can be excised and buried. Either see your physician about this or seek another surgeon that can help you.

Greater auricular nerve injury after facelift surgery.

You describe a neuroma in the greater auric ulnar nerve . This is a sensory nerve that supplies sensation to the ear. Injury to this nerve can also cause sweating in the cheek area when chewing. The treatment at this point is to explore the nerve find the neroma excise and repair. Not a 100% cure rate but the next step in my option after a year and a half. see video

Persistent Pain 1.5 Years after a Facelift

Dear AnnChloe, It sounds like the great auricular nerve was injured during the facelift. This injury can be common after a facelift. Usually, altered sensation in this area ranging from decreased sensation to hypersensitivity can be experienced for up to 3-6 months after the surgery. In cases of hypersensitivity, it is best to stimulate the area with touch and different materials. You can start with a feather and work your way up to more firm objects/textures.... more

Pain long after a face lift

The source of your pain needs to be localized before it can be treated. Your problem is called dysesthesia. At this point you are most likely to have a trapped nerve a neural excitatory problem (nerves haven't calmed down since surgery). an underlying nerve problem made worse by surgery. What to do: 1. have your surgeon find the trigger point and numb it. Do this 3 x a week for two weeks, while you retrain the nerve. (stroking skin to... more

Persistent pain 18 months after facelift

Pain 18 months after the procedure is certainly not normal. It is not unusual to have this in the first few months after surgery but it typically goes away within the first 6-12 months. I agree with trying massage as an initial step. Although it seems counter intuitive, it may help decrease your sensitivity. Evaluation by a neurologist might be helpful if the massage does not adequately relieve your symptoms.

Lawrence Kass, MD

31 reviews

Saint Petersburg Oculoplastic Surgeon

www.kassmd.com

Unusual pain after face lift surgery!

Sorry to hear that you're experiencing discomfort with your face lift procedure. This is an unusual event. Out of nearly two thousand face lift procedure I have performed, I had one patient in the past that experienced similar prolonged discomfort. After treatment with Neurontin, Kenalog injection to the triggered point, as well as massaging her discomfort resolved. Wish you well.

Chronic pain after facelift.

Prolonged pain after surgery is very uncommon and as such there is no protocols or extensive studies that support the most common causes. There are multiple reasons why chronic pain may be present. One of the reasons would be increased sensitivity or irritibility of the nerves. In my practice I have seen this a few times in patients with MS or other neurological problems. Plastic surgery of the face just like any surgery can increase the patients sensitivity and result in... more