Will pregnancy ruin my facelift results?

Question

I’m 37 with fairly firm skin. Noticed sagging in my jowls that filler wasn’t fixing, so I had mid-facelift surgery right after my 37th birthday. Surgeons nurse warned the results could be negatively affected, if I gain or lose weight significantly, after surgery. My 1st pregnancy I gained 25 lbs and, lost 15 lbs, 2 months after delivery. Will a new pregnancy ruin my results? Is there an ideal length of time to wait before conceiving to preserve the results?

Carmina Cardenas, MD · Answer

Weight stability is the most important to preserve results in any surgery. 
It is a myth that you must gain weight and eat for two during pregnancy. 
The correct thing to do all pregnancy is to eat healthy and continue doing exercise during all pregnancy until you can not. The baby is fed from you and through your blood, the baby doesn’t eat what you eat. So if you put on 10-12 lbs will be easily lost. 
Be encouraged. 
Dr. Cardenas

Lucian Ion, FRCS · Answer

Thank you for your question. Pregnancy is associated with both weight fluctuations and redistribution of volume around the face and body in general.

The interval between surgery and pregnancy is probably irrelevant in terms of these changes occurring. Overall, there is benefit to a limited amount of weight gain during pregnancy, but ultimately, the most important thing is your health and the baby’s health.

In terms of other factors that influence the result of surgery, sun protection is important to maintain skin elasticity. During pregnancy, it is also important to reduce the tendency to melasma, which can significantly influence the facial appearance.

Ali Riza Öreroglu, MD · Answer

During pregnancy, gaining and losing weight can affect the skin's elasticity and thus may lead to changes in the face. However, it's difficult to say precisely how weight fluctuations during pregnancy might specifically impact the results of a surgical facelift. Post-pregnancy weight fluctuations can potentially affect the skin's tightness and elasticity in the face, which could alter facelift outcomes. However, to provide a definitive answer on this matter, I would need to directly assess the person during a preoperative consultation to evaluate the likelihood of skin sagging.

Ajaya Kashyap, MD · Answer

Thank you for your query. Pregnancy, if not accompanied by excessive weight gain, does not negatively impact on face lift results. Too much weight gain and loss, whether you are pregnant or not is to be avoided to manintain your results. Please discuss all your concerns with your plastic surgeon. All the best!

Jacob Tower, MD · Answer

Hello, hope you are well. This is a great question! Generally speaking, it's true that large fluctuations in weight can have an adverse impact on the results of facial plastic surgery. However, there is a big asterisk next to this statement in the context of pregnancy. With a healthy pregnancy, much of the weight gain is attributed to the developing fetus and placenta, the amniotic fluid, uterus, and increased blood volume circulating in your body. There is not necessarily a significant change in volume of your body's subcutaneous fat layer, or the volume of fat in your face--those are the things that effect surgical results. Having said that, I don't believe a pregnancy will necessarily 'ruin' your results or that there is an ideal amount of time to wait before conceiving.

Best Wishes,
Dr. Tower

Best Wishes,
Dr. Tower

Todd Christopher Hobgood, MD · Answer

Pregnancy itself won't "ruin" your results, but you may notice that the hormone and weight fluctuations can soften the effects of your surgery. Some of these effects can be temporary, but there is a chance that these changes can be more long-lasting.

That said, many patients go through pregnancy after a facelift without experiencing major changes. A lot depends on your skin's elasticity, how your weight is distributed, and how much your body changes during and after your pregnancy.

There isn’t a strict waiting period before conceiving after a facelift. Still, it’s best to give yourself time to fully recover, usually several months, so your tissues have stabilized before the physical changes of pregnancy.

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