I am a double board certified surgeon trained in Facial Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery. More than any specific surgical result, my goal is happy patients. The key to that outcome is spending the time needed to understand your goals and for you to understand the expected results of each procedure.
My first awareness of Dr Rolfes was seeing two of my clients who I knew both pre and post-op. I marveled at what beautiful work this doctor had done and immediately got his name, and knew he was the person for me! I work with the trans community, so I like to spread the word on what a great surgeon he is and have referred several people to him already some of which are post-op now and just had amazing results! some even better than mine. Like has been said in other reviews, he does not make you look like a bimbo or a cookie cutter face but he takes your natural features and enhances them to what you would probably look like if you were born a beautiful female. When I had my consult, I had ideas of what I wanted, but he also brought up different suggestions, and if you see him please be open-minded to listen to what he has to say he has very very good judgment. On a few of the procedures I told him to go ahead and use his best judgment.... and couldn't be happier. Aside from the doctor though, he also has a staff of people around him that are all very friendly, and by the time you get done with your follow-ups etc you feel like you're part of a family! I cannot talk highly enough about him, and if you are trying to decide between Dr Rolfes and one of the big name surgeons on either Coast, I think you owe it to yourself to at least check Dr Rolfes out. I really have the feeling that in the next several years when people talk about the top three or four surgeons for facial feminization, it will constantly include Dr Rolfes' name. The only downside I could think of is that people are sick of hearing me tell them how damn the adorable I am. Not because I'm conceded or anything.... it had nothing to do with me it had everything to do with the doctor.
I had an absolutely incredible experience with Dr Rolfes and the entire team. I have always been treated with dignity and respect everytime I stepped foot in the office. Also between the 2 surgeries I've had with him I love the way I look and can't recommend him enough.
I love Dr. Rolfes. When I was researching surgeons and I’d talk to someone about their experience with Dr. Rolfes, that was the first thing they all said, and it’s absolutely true. I was initially drawn to Dr. Rolfes because I really liked his aesthetic. As one patient of his put it, “he pulls the feminine face forward,” which I thought was a lovely way to describe it. He has a way of preserving your facial identity, which was really important to me, while making it very feminine a natural looking. And he accomplished this while doing pretty aggressive forehead and nose work, areas where I think he really shines. I had full FFS and am beyond thrilled with my results. Dr. Rolfes is an excellent surgeon who really understands the art and science of constructing a cohesive feminine face. During my pre-op appointment as he was studying my face, he suggested doing a small additional procedure to the outside corners of my eyes to turn them up slightly. This has been one of my favorite parts of my FFS and was the perfect subtle touch that I think really tied everything together. Now my eyes are always smiling, and I love it. While his results are excellent and speak for themselves, what also sets Dr. Rolfes apart is who he is as a person. I have never encountered a more patient, understanding, and caring doctor. From consultation to pre-op, surgery, and all post-op appointments, he made me fell heard safe, confident, and never rushed. He also made a point to get to know me as a person and allowed me to get to know him. FFS is a really unique thing. You do all this research, have a consultation, and then in my case fly half way across the country to have this surgeon reconstruct your face. You have to get very comfortable very quickly, and Dr. Rolfes made that extremely easy. I was a little nervous going into pre-op, but after my two-hour appointment, I felt really good about surgery the next day, and walked into the OR with complete peace of mind, and I have high anxiety. My eight-hour procedure went smoothly without any complications, and they finished 1 minute ahead of schedule. The entire Omni team has also been amazing. My surgery coordinator was great and made things super easy, and the nurses were wonderful. I had three nurses: an OR nurse, recovery nurse, and post-op nurse, and they all made me feel so comfortable and cared for. I was in excellent hands from start to finish. I feel like I can’t say enough about Dr. Rolfes, his staff, and my experience. He changed my life and elevated all of my facial dysphoria. I’m so happy I chose him.
I'm sure I'll be repeating what many people have already said about Dr. Rolfes, but truly it was an excellent experience. I'm a non-binary person who was seeking FFS surgery and I am now just 3 months out from my surgery. I received a brow reduction and raise as well as a hairline advancement and I adore my results! The process from the initial consultation to the after care visits and follow up visits, could not have gone any smoother for me! Dr. Rolfes is unbelievably knowledgeable and personable and will have answers to any and all of your questions and concerns and will be honest and completely upfront about them. He has so much experience with the trans community so you will be in good hands, and all the staff are incredible as well. I will be recommending him and the whole team to anyone who is looking for gender affirming surgeries!
I had surgery 2 years ago, I had VFS and some revision face surgery. I waited a long time to write a VFS review because I was nervous it would get undone during intubation for SRS and other cosmetic surgery. But now that I'm done with that, and it seems to be ok so far, I can leave a complete review. I had wendler's glottoplasty and am very happy with the outcome. Prior the this procedure I was always nervous to speak since it made me seem obviously male a lot of times. I began hrt before getting like a beard or anything, but after having a deeper voice, so I had a lot of awkward moments. And I was bad at the training stuff and disliked how it felt. After the surgery I am happy with how my voice sounds all the time except when i get like super sick or don't sleep a whole night. I would definitely recommend this surgeon and procedure to anyone else in a similar boat.
I consulted with most of the well-known FFS doctors as well as Dr. Rolfes. I felt like his results were more personalized to the individual, resulting in a more natural appearance. He also did a great job of listening to my goals and working with me on a plan. He and his staff exceeded my expectations in every way. They went above and beyond to help with my nausea from the anesthesia and pain medicine. They were incredibly responsive, with Dr. Rolfes even answering my calls in the middle of the night when I felt like the need was urgent. Everyone was friendly and really good at what they do and I'm so grateful for that. Best of all, the results are better than I ever could have dreamed. My goal wasn't to look like a barbie doll, just to look how I always should have. That's exactly what I see in the mirror now. To say this has been life-changing is a massive understatement. I'm beautiful and I'm me. Getting surgery with Dr. Rolfes is one of the best choices I've ever made.
I'm a trans woman and went to Dr Rolfes for facial feminization surgery (brow, nose, hairline) and I had great results! This was a life changing procedure and I'm glad I went with Dr Rolfes & his team.
Dr. Rolfes is the best plastic surgeon out there. I’m so fortunate that he did my female feminization surgery. He exceeded my expectations more than anything. I’m still healing and I will post pictures in the future. The staff and nurses are top notch. He truly is an artist. He is so patient and a great listener. Honestly I feel like he should be given ten stars. If you’re in another state, please do yourself a favor. See Dr. Rolfes and let him create a beautiful version of you!
Dr Rolfes is a talented and extremely compassionate surgeon. I chose him for my FFS over a few others because when I spoke to him I felt his "care factor". He listened to me and wanted to give me what I wanted rather than a cookie-cutter look or template. He is also very personable, trans-positive, and a joy to converse with. On August 18th, 2020 I had mandible contouring, type 3 forehead contouring, a brow raise, hairline advancement, cheek augmentation, lip lift, rhinoplasty, and fat added to my chin divot. I have since had a 2nd round of revisions/procedures with Dr. Rolfes on Feburary 25th, 2021 that included additional fat grafting, a lip lift revision, face lift, and extra orbital rim shaving. The thing that stands out to me about Dr. Rolfes is his commitment to making his patients happy. I initially had some issues with my FFS results and felt more bone could be removed over my eyes. He made it substantially better but I still felt there was room for improvement. I also had a hard time seeing the jawline work due to swelling and sag. Additionally, my chin divot, which I wanted filled in completely, still showed some signs of visibility. When I reached out to him about these issues I was blown away by his compassion. Instead of negating my feelings or bargaining with me, he immediately offered to revise anything I was unhappy with. Wow! I couldn't believe his generosity. Prior to the 2nd surgery, while I was sitting in the hospital gown waiting to go under, he sat down with me and we went over all my concerns. I pointed things out and he made etchings and drawings with a marker on my face so we could be completely on the same page. He acknowledged everything and basically asked me what I wanted. I felt like a kid in a candy store! :D He put me at ease in a way I never expected from a surgeon and I felt so cared for and heard. I am now quite happy with his work and feel very fortunate to have met Dr. Rolfes. I feel like I have been given a gift and no longer have to worry about whether I'll pass as a woman whenever I step outside. Additionally, I feel beautiful and smile so much more when looking in the mirror. His jawline work is excellent, my orbital area and forehead are 1000x better than they used to be, and my nose is overall smaller which is what I asked for. I still have some qualms about my nose, but he has offered to fix any issues I have with that as well. His staff, including Melissa and Tiffany and Michaela, are phenomenal and will go to bat for you. At one point I was having difficulty getting the crucial lab results I had been waiting for from my very stubborn doctor's office and Michaela called them up and essentially demanded them. It was down to the wire and had she not done that my surgery probably would have been cancelled! It was an inspiring moment of the extent the staff will go to. I also received a complimentary massage after my surgery which was a level of pampering I am not used to. I left Omni Cosmetic feeling like a QUEEN. For the record, I work at Starbucks and this was all covered by their transgender supplemental program. I am but a humble barista with an immense gratitude for my employer as well as Omni. In summary, pick Dr. Rolfes if you want a surgeon who listens and cares for you. Who speaks in plain, understandable terms and will treat you like a person and not $$ signs. He doesn't offer unnecessary procedures like a "sliding t genioplasty" for instance unless he feels it's necessary. (It wasn't for me, even though every other surgeon recommended it.). Lastly, his work is wonderful and I look like a gosh darn Kardashian some days. :D I will continue to go to him for any procedure I can feasibly have him perform because I know he has my happiness in mind! <3
I don’t have anything negative to say with Dr Rolfes. He was kind, professional, honest and made the whole experience all around very easy and painless. I got a rhinoplasty and the results are everything I could have ever wanted and more. I almost cried when he took the cast off. If you’re contemplating this surgery, Dr Rolfes is honestly the best you could ask for.
A lip lift is first and foremost about adjusting the height of the bottom of the upper lip to the nose (making that distance short enough so that some teeth show). A second benefit from a lip lift is that the height of the skin from the red lip to the nose can be shortened, and the red lip can be rolled out to look fuller. You can also add some shape to the upper lip - make it look more like a "cupid's bow", and highlight the philtral columns if needed. You can vary the amount of shortening vs the amount of lip rolling to a certain extent - that way you can do a lift that mostly lifts the lip but doesn't make it much bigger, or make the lip bigger without lifting it too much. Yes, your lip can be too short for a lip lift. If that is the case you may be a better candidate for augmentation with filler or fat grafting. Sit down with one of us who does a lot of these procedures and go over the exact changes you are looking for and they can help you decide which procedure would be best for you! -Dr. Rolfes
Cactusgal, A "lip flip" with botox can make the lip look fuller in some patients, but most patients will see a minimal difference. Botox relaxes muscles, so you need to be someone who is always contracting that muscle and pursing their lips to benefit from relaxing it. It can also may make you unable to whistle or drink from a straw. Botox will not shorten the distance from your nose to your upper lip and it will also blunt some of the nice philtral column definition you have. As we age our upper lip gets longer and will eventually cover our upper teeth, botox won't reverse that either. Filler will actually accelerate the tooth covering process. A lip lift, on the other hand, will shorten that distance, increase tooth show, and roll out the lip making it look bigger. When a lip lift is done properly it will lift the entire lip - even the corners. The trade-off is a scar under the nose. With fair skin and no history of bad scarring I would expect that scar to be hard to find in a couple months, but it will be quite visible for a few weeks. An experienced lip lift surgeon should be able to show you before and after photos as well as photos of the scar at one week, one month, three months, etc., so you have an idea of what to expect. You will have to avoid excess sun on the scar for a couple months, which could be a summer challenge for a cactus gal in MN! -Dr. Rolfes
You need a lip lift. I would also recommend using the tissue that is removed from under your nose to add a little shape and volume to your upper lip - it has a nice shape at rest but loses it shape and volume when you smile. You can also lower your columella a little. That is the tissue that divides your nostrils and it tucks up a little between the ala, the outside of the nostrils, as it meets your upper lip. You can do this all at once. Hope that helps!-Dr. Rolfes
What you see is caused by both a weak jaw bone and some soft tissue fullness under the jaw. Implants would add nice projection to your chin and the angle of your mandible and create the appearance of a stronger jaw bone. Liposuction would get rid of a small amount of the soft tissue fullness. To get rid of all the soft tissue fullness you would need a small surgery to get rid of some of the deeper fat, some extra saliva gland tissue, and tighten the platysma muscle under your chin. Any combination of these procedures would help you get closer to the look you want!-Dr. Rolfes
Shannon, You have a long upper lip and a well defined subnasal crease. You are a good candidate for a lip lift. Your history of how well you heal is probably more predictive of the ultimate scar than wether or not you have scleroderma. If notice that after you get a cut or a scrape that you often get a thick scar, then you may think twice about a lip lift. Then again, a lip lift will improve the balance of your lower face to such a degree that may be worth at least some scar. Dr. Rolfes