{"id":21465,"date":"2021-12-08T11:48:04","date_gmt":"2021-12-08T19:48:04","guid":{"rendered":"https://www.realself.com\/news\/?p=21465"},"modified":"2024-02-15T16:01:53","modified_gmt":"2024-02-16T00:01:53","slug":"real-facelift-scars","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https://www.realself.com\/news\/real-facelift-scars","title":{"rendered":"Seeing Scars: What Real Facelift Scars Look Like on 11 Patients, From Immediately After Surgery to 9.5 Years Post-Op"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcome to RealSelf’s new series, <\/em>Seeing Scars<\/em><\/strong>. As part of our ongoing effort to boost transparency in plastic surgery, we’ll be showcasing incisions from various cosmetic procedures—across skin tones and at different stages of healing—to combat the fear and stigma surrounding surgical scars. Our latest installment explores facelift scars.<\/em><\/p>

Is there a more anxiety-provoking scar in all of plastic surgery than that from a facelift<\/a>? Circumnavigating the ears, facelift incisions not only are sizable and in plain sight, but if not meticulously designed, they can also serve as indelible evidence of surgery. The good news: Today’s surgeons pride themselves on routinely creating undetectable facelift scars.<\/p>

Originating, typically, in the hairline by the temples and winding down and around the ears, facelift incisions are purposefully long. They grant access to the deeper tissues that surgeons are aiming to reposition or otherwise augment while allowing them to trim away excess skin before redraping and closing the face, all without tugging on or bunching up the skin in the process. And every millimeter of these incisions must be thoughtfully planned and executed. <\/p>

To start, “the incision should carefully hug the temporal hairline—so that it’s hidden just behind it—without distorting it,” says Dr. John L. Burns Jr.<\/a>, a board-certified plastic surgeon in Dallas. “A carelessly placed incision will elevate the temporal hairline, leaving no sideburn and a bald spot at the temple.”<\/p>

As the incision travels down the crease in front of the ear, it commonly dips behind the tragus—the tab of cartilage in front of the ear canal—before continuing along to the earlobe. (In male facelift patients, surgeons commonly keep the incision in front of the tragus in order to avoid pulling hair-bearing skin into the ear, where it clearly doesn’t belong.) “The earlobe itself is very critical,” adds Dr. Burns Jr. “It should remain as it is—either attached or unattached, depending on the patient—and it should not be placed under tension, as this can result in a pointy earlobe, called a pixie ear,” which is another classic tell of facelift surgery. The incision will then climb up the back of the ear before veering off into the hairline to hide.<\/p>

Surgical cuts inevitably heal into scars, which tend to flatten and fade remarkably fast, as you can see below. In fact, many of these unfiltered images—submitted by both surgeons and patients—will have you pinching your screens and straining your eyes in an effort to see traces of scarring around the ears. Which is precisely the goal of every facelift surgeon on the planet.<\/p>

Interested in facelift?<\/small><\/div>Find Doctors Near You<\/a><\/div>

On the table, immediately after facelift surgery<\/h2>
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“Beautiful stitching sets the stage for beautiful results. This was taken immediately after surgery and was achieved by using good techniques to respect the skin and underlying tissues. It takes more time to close incisions this way, but details matter—and your face is worth it!” —Dr. Justin C. Cohen<\/em><\/a>, a board-certified facial plastic surgeon in Washington, D.C.<\/em><\/p>

One day post-op, one week post-op, and one year post-op<\/h2>
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“In our practice, a face and neck lift involves tightening loose facial and neck skin and muscles, lifting the jowls, and removing fat deposits in the neck. It’s very important to not place any tension on the skin itself, since this can lead to wide and hypertrophic scars. The sutures are also removed within the first week after the surgery. After a facelift, the incisions are going to be red for the first couple of weeks, dark pink for the next couple weeks, and then light pink for two to three months, before turning to fine white lines. This patient’s scarring is pretty typical of a facelift in our practice, but everyone heals differently. A small steroid shot can be placed, if the scar becomes noticeable or lumpy.” —<\/em>Dr. William Portuese<\/em><\/a>, a board-certified facial plastic surgeon in Seattle<\/em><\/p>

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