How Many Days Post Op from a Facelift Should Sutures in Front of Ears Be Removed, for the best possible chance of limited scarring? Thank you
When Should Facelift Sutures Be Removed?
Doctor Answers 47
Hello and thank you for the question.
Pre-auricular sutures or those in front of the ears, are generally removed at 5-6 days following your procedure. Your surgeon will make the determination as to when the sutures should be removed based on the suture type, the method of closure, and how your healing is progressing.
Best of luck,
Glenn Vallecillos, M.D., F.A.C.S.
We like to remove the potentially visible sutures 6 days after facelifting. I do not think that 1 day plus or minus will make a dramatic difference. Appropriate incision placement and careful incision suturing is of superior importance.
Personally, I believe that the suture material chosen will have an impact on the final scarline, too.
I generally remove preauricular (in front of ear) sutures 4-6 days after surgery. We being scar massage therapy 2-3 weeks later.
Web reference: http://www.basuplasticsurgery.com
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I typically remove my skin sutures at 4-5 days after surgery. Depending on a patients skin characteristics and wound healing capabilities, I may wait until a week if it is in the best interest of the patient. I do place several deep dissolvable sutures to take tension off the skin closure. I find that this significantly reduces scar widening due to tension and allows me to remove the skin level sutures early enough to minimize the railroad track appearance.
I wish you a safe and happy recovery.
Web reference: http://www.drpaulgill.com
Dear BrookeinCO,
In general, the timing of suture (stitch) removal is a balance between allowing the skin to heal sufficiently, but not allowing the sutures to make a (potentially) permanent mark on the skin. Face lift sutures that are visible may only be the 'top layer' of stitching. That means there are deeper, dissolving stitches that also help to hold the closure together. If this is the case, the visible stitches could be removed in early as 3 - 5 days. If there are no deep stitches, the average time would be slightly longer at about 5-7 days. Hope this helps.
Best regards,
Lawrence Tong MD FACS FRCSC
Dear Brookien
I personally use a combination of running and interrupted sutures in front of the ears where things are very visible. That way I can remove most of the running suture on the 4th day and take out the interrupted surgery a couple of days later. This works very well in my hands. But here is the thing. Things work differently for different surgeons. Certainly I would personally be concerned if the bulk of the these sutures are not out be day 7. You surgeon should be very open to discussing this.
Web reference: http://www.lidlift.com
Sutures after a facelift are removed between 5-7 days. There are many more absorbable sutures beneath the skin which do most of the hard work and dissolve over time.
Web reference: Http://www.elpasoplasticsurgery.com
In this age sutures in front of the ear are less common. Now with buried sutures and tissue glue there are very few sutures to remove. I typically remove the limited skin sutures out in one week.
All the best,
Tal Raine MD FACS
The timing for suture removal after Facelift is important to set up the incision line for minimal scar: too soon and incision may separate and the scar may spread. If we leave the sutures in too long, there can be marks from the sutures or foreign body irritation that leads to scar thickening.
Most Facelift surgeons will use a low reactive suture material (polypropylene or nylon) of relatively delicate caliber in front of the ear and then remove the sutures at 5-7 days.
There may be some variation in the judgment of the surgeon, for managing tension in the closure or for skin type.
Web reference: http://www.drzwiebel.com
Hi BrookeinCO-
It depends on the type of suture used to close the skin. Generally speaking 5-7 days.
Sincerely,
Tom Kaniff
These answers are for educational purposes and should not be relied upon as a substitute for medical advice you may receive from your physician. If you have a medical emergency, please call 911. These answers do not constitute or initiate a patient/doctor relationship.
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