How Many Stitches Does a Facelift Require?

After a comprehensive full face/neck lift, 40-50 stitches are used to meticulously close the incision site at the hairline, in front and behind the ears. These stitches are removed at the fourth day after the surgery to avoid railroad track scars along the incision line. In our practice, we perform a high-SMAS lower face and neck lift which accomplishes tightening loose facial and neck skin, tightening loose facial and neck muscles, lifting the jowls, and removing any fatty deposits in the neck along with a platysma-plasty.
The incisions themselves are not closed under any tension because the tension is placed on the muscle layer and the SMAS layer underneath. So the skin is pulled together very gingerly, which prevents the wind-tunneled or operated look, and patients heal very naturally. For many examples of facial rejuvenation, please see the link below  to our facelift  Photo Gallery

The number of stitches used is ultimately not as
important as the technique of the surgeon placing them. Each individual will
require a different number of stitches based on their individual facial anatomy
and the type of facelift they are receiving. A skilled surgeon will place just
enough stitches to ensure the best healing and results with minimal scarring.
Instead of worrying about the exact number of stitches used, be sure to do your
research and visit a skilled, board-certified facial plastic surgeon with
enough experience and expertise to help you achieve your goals.

The number ofsutures is not as important as how well and meticulous they are placed. Inormally perform a running interlocking suturing technique that provides verysmooth and beautiful results. These sutures are removed in 6 days and incisionlines are barely visible in 3 weeks. Best results are obtained with no tension duringskin closure. The bottom line should bea beautiful and natural facelift result, the number of sutures isirrelevant.

There is definitely a lot of stitching in the typical facelift both in the deeper tissues and the skin. I have never counted but it is easily more than one hundred in total.

The question begs another - why do you ask ?Excellent results can be had with varying techniques, and from person to person and different number of sutures.  In general the finer the suture, the more that may be required.Pick the best surgeon, not the number of sutures used as more does not equal better (nor does less).

The number of sutures utilized
during a facelift is dependent upon the type of facelift performed and the
suture technique utilized by the surgeon. 
Obviously, when larger procedures are performed, incisions are longer
and more sutures are used.  In many
cases surgeons utilize running buried sutures.  For these reasons, it’s impossible to provide an absolute
number of sutures used during a facelift. 
Furthermore, most surgeons use just enough sutures to get the job done, because additional sutures might cause excess
scarring.

You will require many more stitches than you could ever count.  Best of luck.  You will do great.   Best of luck.

This is a great question, answer could be from 0 to 1000 depending on the surgeon and the type of stitches. Dont worry about the brush worry about the painter

Thanks for the question! The answer depends on what technique is used, and how you count the stitches. Generally speaking, around 30 sutures are used when I do a facelift.

Dear charlotamed,

 

It really depends on how the suturing is done, and whether you count internal sutures as well as external ones.  In a facelift where the SMAS is elevated as a flap or plicated, there will be many internal sutures - usually around 10-20 per side.

As for the skin, there are usually several running baseball-type sutures placed which if placed as single sutures would probably amount to anywhere between 60-100 sutures, especially if your surgeon uses very small sutures.

Some surgeons will also use staples in the hair-bearing areas - don't be scared.  Some surgeons believe that staples are better in hair-bearing areas as they aren't circumferential ly wrapped around the hair follicles.  It is believed that this may help prevent areas of baldness or alopecia around the incisions.

I hope this helps.

Sincerely,

Asif Pirani, MD, FRCS(C)

Most sutures in a facelift are deep and there are numerous skin sutures. The main concern and most important thing is how well the sutures are placed in the SMAS and how well they close the skin without tension.