8 months post op - am I experiencing cobra neck deformity? (photos)

Thank you for your photos. It appears the medial edges of your platysma muscles either were not sutured together or separated after your surgery. To form a “hammock” across your neck, and give the best neck contour, excess fat under the platysma is contoured and the medial edges of the platysma muscle are sutured together. The lateral part of the platysma is then partially elevated and advanced superiorly/posteriorly to smooth the neck contour. A revision should be able to improved your result, taking into account that revision surgery is slightly more difficult due to the scarring in the area. Best wishes.

Thank you for your inquiry and for sharing your photographs. Without comparative images showing the appearance of your neck prior to the intervention, it is more challenging to fully qualify the result. However, based on your current images, the primary issue appears to be related to the platysma muscles and, to some degree, to the volume lateral to the midline. This corresponds to the digastric muscles and the lower part of the submandibular glands.

Volume reduction further laterally, beneath the platysma, can help improve the overall balance of the neck contour. However, on its own, this approach does not completely address the visibility of the platysma bands. Treating platysma bands can be particularly challenging, especially in individuals who have very active expression in the area beneath the chin during speech.

A combination of treatments, including procedures targeting the platysma, division of certain muscle fibres, and lateral suspension, are part of the available options to manage these concerns. It is worth noting, though, that in some cases, a small amount of banding may persist.

That said, if lateral volume is reduced more significantly, the bands often become less prominent. This occurs because the reference plane of the contour under the chin moves upward and is better hidden by the mandibular outline.

After a neck lift, it’s possible for slight sagging to occur over time, which can be part of the natural healing process and skin structure. In your case, since it’s been 8 months since the surgery, a revision may be possible to correct the issue.