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Facelift Surgery Scars

Will I have visible scars from a face lift?

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Invisible facelift incisions

No facelift are completely invisible. However if they are exceptionally placed and not closed too tightly (too much tension), they can be functionally invisible. The ability of the surgeon to create minimally visible incisions and a natural look are the most highly prized features of the modern facelift.

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Brent Moelleken, MD

Beverly Hills Plastic Surgeon

ASAPS ASPS

Anytime that the skin is cut, there is a scar which is...

Anytime that the skin is cut, there is a scar which is formed. Surgeons trained in facelift and cosmetic surgery techniques are trained to minimize the scars. One important technique is to place the incision in areas which are hidden and in areas where they may look like natural wrinkles. Other techniques rely on minimizing the amount of tension on the wound to prevent widened and elevated scars. There is also a risk of 'hypertrophic scars' and 'keloids' anytime the skin is cut. This risk is... more

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D.J. Verret, MD

Dallas Facial Plastic Surgeon

Facelift incisions generally heal very well

It is impossible to say with 100% certainty that your incisions will heal perfectly. Incision healing is dependent on several factors, including surgical technique, prevention of infection, reduction of tension, patient nutrition, not smoking (before or after surgery), genetics, etc. For the most part, however, facelift incisions heal very well. The incision starts in front of and within your ear and then curves behind the earlobe and extends along the crease behind your ear. For the... more

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David Shafer, MD

New York Plastic Surgeon

ASPS

Scars from a Facelift

The facelift procedure involves incisions that skirt the contour of the ears, using the anatomy of the ear to help conceal them. For a full facelift, the incision starts in the sideburn area, follows the contours of the junction of the ear with the face, curves behind the earlobe into the recess between the posterior ear and the neck/scalp, and then extends into the hairline posteriorly at the top of the ear. When I make these incisions, I design them so that, once fully healed, they may be... more

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Michael Law, MD

Raleigh-Durham Plastic Surgeon

ASAPS ASPS

The incisions for a face-lift are well hidden under the...

The incisions for a face-lift are well hidden under the chin, in front and behind the ears. In time, hairs grow right through the scar, concealing it almost entirely. The incision is actually placed paralleling the hair shafts and bulbs so that bald areas do not exist in most cases. There is little to no tension placed on the skin to allow proper healing and prevent wide scars from forming. Sutures are removed four days after the procedure to prevent “rail-road tracking” along... more

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William Portuese, MD

Seattle Facial Plastic Surgeon

Facelift scarring

The goal of any cosmetic procedure is making the negatives out weighed by the positives. Any time the skin it cut, there is potential for a scar. A board-certified plastic surgeon, certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, is trained in techniques to minimize visible signs of surgery. Most facelift procedures have scars that fade away and hide over time. The scars are often hiden in natural skin creases and hair, to conceal the nature of the surgery. There is always a risk the... more

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Julius W. Few, MD

Chicago Plastic Surgeon

ASAPS ASPS

Facelift scars should not be easily visible, if at all

It is not possible to make a facelift incision without creating a scar. However, facelift incisions should be designed to make very hairdresser proud. That is, the hairdresser should be the only one who spots them. In most cases, the incision is minimally visible in front of the ear. In back of the ear, we design the incision such that it does not or minimally alters the hairline and allows the hair to be worn back. The accompanying video may help with understanding facelift techniques. more

Sam Most, MD

Bay Area Facial Plastic Surgeon

Scarless Facelift

There's no such thing as a Facelift where the scars are completely invisible. If you look up closely you'll see them but they are typically placed in very, very inconspicuous areas. Because I do deep plane techniques in facelift, I've seen it first hand. With the deeper structures suspended securely, the tension is placed under the skin and it just sits up against the other skin edge. The scars heal so well that some of my patients have said that they didn't even realize they had scars... more

Ricardo A. Meade, MD

Dallas Plastic Surgeon

ASPS

Will I have visible scars from a face lift?

I THINK what you meant to ask was "Will I have NOTICEABLE scars from a face lift?" Every incision results in a scar and every scar is permanent AND visible to close examination. The question is can a Facelift be done and for the scar to be almost unnoticeable? The answer is - YES. All the pulling in a Facelift must be done by deep stitching NOT the superficial skin stitches closing the incision. IF the Facelift incision is placed along the margin of the hair and along the border... more

Peter A. Aldea, MD

Memphis Plastic Surgeon

ASPS

Facelift Scars: It's all about placment and tension

The two basic issues that affect the way Facelift scars heal are incision placement and skin tension. From a healing standpoint, the face has an excellent blood supply which directly correlates with excellent wound healing. Therefore, as long as incisions are placed in locations corresponding to natural skin folds or anatomic junctions, the scars that ensue should lie within these locations. This holds true if and only if the tension in the procedure is placed on the deeper tissues (SMAS)... more

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Stephen Prendiville, MD

Fort Myers Facial Plastic Surgeon

Facelift scars not noticeable

While it is impossible not to have any scar with surgery, a well executed facelift will leave inconspicuous scars such that others will have a hard time noticing even with close examination. A good facelift is designed with the incisions in the temporal and posauricular (behind the ear) hair bearing scalp. The incision does travel in front of the ear, but should be designed to fall within natural curves and skin creases. In women, we like to plan the incision behind the tragus. In addition... more

Corey S. Maas, MD

San Francisco Facial Plastic Surgeon

Scars after facelifts are always visible but usually not noticed

Scars after a facelift are always visible but typically not noticed. The scars are generally inconspicuous and fairly well hidden. But even under the best of conditions with ideal scars, if a person were examined closely the scars can always be found. This is one reason why hair stylists can always tell if their client has had a facelift. They know where to look for the scars and will find them if they are present. Fortunately, most people are not going to examine you as closely and... more

Wayne I. Yamahata, MD

Sacramento Plastic Surgeon

ASPS

Scarring after a facelift procedure

Most scarring that occurs after a facelift is in inconspicuous areas like just in front of the ears, behind the ears and in the temporal or hairline behind the ears. Some physicians vary the incisions slightly. There are factors that definitely affect the visibility of the scar. First, if you typically heal poorly from scars or have a history of poor scarring or keloids, I would think twice about the procedure and opt for something less invasive. Secondly, if you want to be over pulled or... more

Scott Trimas, MD

Jacksonville Facial Plastic Surgeon

Scars from Facelifts are permanent, but usually well-hidden

I would agree with most of the posters here. Facelifts do create permanent scars which are often visible. The important thing is that the surgeon places these scars in areas which are well-hidden, and so even if they do become a bit thick (which can be unpredictable in a very small percentage of cases) they are still well-hidden and usually not visible. It's extremely rare for most facelift patients to complain about a visible scar. I had one male patient who said his scars were visible,... more

Anthony Youn, MD

Detroit Plastic Surgeon

ASPS

Facelift Scars

By and large, facelift incisions are visually concealed or hidden in natural creases or are done in a curvilinear fashion so that over time it is almost imperceptible in front or hidden inside the ear or hairline. These can often be blended so that in the first month they are perceptible only within your comfort zone. Then, after 6 weeks they are almost imperceptible if placed correctly.

Rod J. Rohrich, MD

Dallas Plastic Surgeon

ASAPS ASPS

Facelift scars should not be noticable

Your scars should not be noticable - they are well hidden in the natural creases in your face and shadows of you hair. If you are concerned, have your plastic surgeon show you some examples of scars - I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. In the small chance and worst case senario that you have poor scars - you can have some hair transplants performed to hide them - thought this is usually rare and unnecessary. Dr. Cat Begovic M.D.

Catherine Huang-Begovic, MD

Beverly Hills Facial Plastic Surgeon

Facelift scars will be hidden

There are different forms of facelifts with variations on where the incisions are made, so the scars depend on that. In general they are around the ear, tucked into places where they are very inconspicuous. One important thing is where it transitions into the hairline above the ear. Traditionally it goes behind the hairline where it is completely hidden, but this can displace the hairline upward which looks odd and is a tipoff to a facelift. An alternative is to go across at the sideburn... more

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Richard Baxter, MD

Seattle Plastic Surgeon

ASAPS ASPS

Facelift scars

I agree with most of the above posts. The keys to having "good" Facelift scars is as follows: 1. Proper incision placement 2. Minimal tension in closing 3. Meticulous hand-sewn closure 4. Proper trimming of skin flaps You should discuss each of these points with your surgeon before your procedure

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Benjamin C. Marcus, MD

Madison Facial Plastic Surgeon

Facelift scars

If the experienced surgeon places the incisions in the right locations and places the tension on the deeper tissues rather than pulling hard on the skin as in an old fashioned facelift, the scars should be very hard to detect. "Only your hairdresser will know for sure" as the commercial used to say!

Richard P. Rand, MD, FACS

Seattle Plastic Surgeon

ASAPS ASPS

Face lift scars should be minimal

The intent of a face lift is to look good and to hide any evidence that the surgeon was there. Well placed incisions are the key to minimizing scars after a face lift. Reducing the tension on the skin also helps in preventing scars. While it is impossible to say 100% that there will not beany scars following certain principals minimizes the chances of scars.

Carlos Wolf, MD

Miami Facial Plastic Surgeon

Facelift scars

As in any plastic surgery the goal is to hide or minimize scars . For the most part the scars are hidden in inconspicuous areas and they tend to heal well. Unless you have a known wound healing problem like keloids I think you can rest assure that your scars should do well. If you are concerned discuss your fears with your board certfied plastic surgeon before proceeding. Good luck with your surgery.

Steven Schuster, MD

Boca Raton Plastic Surgeon

ASAPS ASPS

Are scars visible after a facelift?

A skilled plastic surgeon will place the scars so that they are inconspicuous. It is also crucially important that your hairline is not altered, as this is a tell-tale give away that you have had a facelift. Look at a lot of pictures of the doctor's work including pictures taken from the side, so you can see the location of the hairline around the ear, behind the ear and in the temporal area. You should be able to wear your hair in a pony tail; if the hairline behind the ear is altered... more

Tracy Pfeifer, MD

Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

ASAPS ASPS

Facelift scars

As in all cosmetic surgical procedures we want to leave no visible tell tale signs after a facelift. Properly placed and correctly performed incisions and suturing should leave virtually no visible scars even as soon as 3-4 weeks. Leaving the hair a little longer for a few weeks after the procedure will help camaflague until healing is complete.

Andrew Pichler, MD

Sacramento Facial Plastic Surgeon

Facelift scars

The facelift procedure involves making incisions in the facial skin, therefor, there will be scars. However, these scars should be hidden in certain areas ( for example, behind the tragus and inside the hair) and not visible. The key is to close the skin without any tension. This will result in scars that are well hidden and imperceptible.

Andres Bustillo, MD

Miami Facial Plastic Surgeon

Facelift surgery scars

Every time that a surgeon has to cut the skin, we are going to have a scar. The secret for a good Facelift scar is to: 1. Select a Board Certified Facial Plastic Surgeon with experience. 2. The incisions have to be made on natural wrinkle lines that will minimize their exposure. 3. Closure with no tension. 4. Try to stay in a recliner and off your bed for 4-6 weeks. I hope these tips help you.