LIFESTYLE LIFT

A Lifestyle Lift was, essentially, a one-size-fits-all mini facelift. It began with a physician making incisions both in the front and back of the ear, via the temple hairline, while the patient was under local anesthesia. Because the incisions were shorter than those typically used during traditional facelift surgery, the procedure is referred to as a short-scar facelift. 

The Lifestyle Lift technique focused on pulling adjacent tissues and folding excess muscle, then using sutures to hold them in place. Excess skin was trimmed and incisions closed. Due to minimal lifting of the skin and the underlying connective tissue, tension on the incisions would stretch out the skin and widen scars. 

The procedure also didn’t offer lasting results, according to disappointed patient reviews.

Other cosmetic procedures that were offered à la carte or in tandem included eyelid surgery, brow lifts, fractional CO2 laser skin resurfacing, fat grafting, and chin augmentation. Liposuction may have been used to reduce fat from under the chin.

The chain closed in 2015, due to overextended marketing costs, a lawsuit, and reviews from patients who were dissatisfied with their experience and results. 

The Lifestyle Lift first came under scrutiny in 2008 when the company filed a lawsuit against RealSelf, claiming trademark infringement after RealSelf members posted negative reviews about their cosmetic surgery experience. 

RealSelf countersued, pointing out that the company was posting fake positive reviews (which were identified and pulled down).

In 2009, the New York Attorney General's office began an investigation into the false reviews published by Lifestyle Lift to counteract all the negative patient testimonials. Florida’s attorney general also required Lifestyle Lift to refund money and adjust its advertising. 

According to The New York Times, “The company had ordered employees to pretend they were satisfied customers and write glowing reviews of its face-lift procedure on Web sites, according to the attorney general’s statement. Lifestyle Lift also created its own sites of face-lift reviews, to appear as independent sources.”

Lifestyle Lift was ordered to pay $300,000 to New York State. It also agreed to cease the practice of posting fake reviews. 

The company struggled with this additional fallout:

• In 2008, a surgeon in Orlando, Florida, filed a complaint with the Florida Board of Medicine, seeking payment for emergency room services he provided to a Lifestyle Lift patient; the company denied that it was negligent. 
• In 2010, Lifestyle Lift was the subject of a lawsuit filed by the family of a Massachusetts patient who had died as a result of complications from the procedure in July 2009. The suit alleged that doctors didn’t monitor the patient’s vitals. The company responded that the patient’s medical history hadn’t been fully disclosed. 
• In 2011, a lawsuit in Broward County, Florida, claimed that a patient developed keloid scars within days following a Lifestyle Lift. The patient alleged that the doctor hadn’t disclosed the risks of scarring. Lifestyle Lift supported its surgeon in the suit.

Given the volume of patient complications, which drove the company out of business, Lifestyle Lift procedures were not considered safe or effective.

• Average Cost:
• $11,911

• Range:
• $6,650 - $24,000

There are a host of facial plastic surgery procedures that are less invasive than a full facelift and target specific areas of concern. 

The mini facelift

A mini lift addresses wrinkles and tightens the jawline to eliminate jowls. While the procedure won't deliver the dramatic results of a traditional full facelift, benefits include a shorter scar, quicker recovery time, and lower cost. 

The QuickLift

A QuickLift is intended to tighten skin around the lower half of the face and neck by creating an incision near the ear and pulling up on the face. The difference between a QuickLift and a mini lift? “In general, the mini lift doesn't address the neck,” explains Alpharetta, Georgia-based otolaryngologist Dr. Philip K. Robb. “This decreases the recovery [time], as the neck area isn't operated on.” 

The thread lift

A thread lift is a nonsurgical procedure that passes threads underneath the surface of your skin, lifting the tissue. It can give your face a more lifted, toned appearance as well as trigger a boost in your natural collagen production. It’s a quick procedure, with minimal downtime. It’s also called a feather lift, a Contour Thread Lift, or an APTOS lift.

The neck lift

If you're only concerned about the signs of aging below the chin, a neck lift removes excess neck fat, tightens the neck muscle, and lifts sagging skin. It creates a more defined jawline and a slimmer, smoother-looking neck. Jowls will be modestly improved.