Is SMAS a group of muscles?

Question

When having a Smas Facelift does every individual have different muscles lifted out of the 42/43 muscles in your face approx home many get lifted in a smas lift, how do you exercise these

Marc DuPéré, MD · Answer

Thank you for your question.SMAS stands for: Superficial Musculo-Aponeurotic System.  Another word for aponeurosis is fascia.  Fascia is a thin yet strong layers covering all muscles, including the facial muscles.  (analogy: it is the thick white shiny layers that one may see on meat cuts at the butcher, something that needs to be removed by the butcher, otherwise the meat has to be cooked for several hours... it is a strong layer hence important in a 2-layer facelift!In the face, all facial muscles are connected to each other by this fascia and the entire SMAS is a one unit.  Pulling on it and in different directions (vectors) will address several areas of the face that are aging and everything will move en bloc, i.e. as one single unit.Hope this clarifies!Best regards.

Martin Jugenburg, MD · Answer

SMAS refers to a layer of facial muscles under the facial skin which is often moved and tightened during a facelift procedure.

Larry S. Nichter, MD, MS, FACS · Answer

SMAS is an abbreviation for a tissue layer called the Superficial Muscular Aponeurotic System. As this is a mouthful, most patients and surgeons use the acronym SMAS. The SMAS is a relatively thin layer of strong fascial supporting tissue that covers and surrounds the deeper tissues and structures of the face and neck, including fat pads and muscles, and the entire cheek area. It also attaches to the superficial muscle covering the lower face near the jaw line and neck called the platysma. As the SMAS attaches to all of these areas of the face, a SMAS lift surgically elevates this layer which in turn elevates the soft tissues and structures of the face. To do this, the SMAS layer can be folded superiorly and attached to itself, called SMAS plication, or it can be tightened and lifted by removing a redundant portion and then reattaching itself in the uplifted position (SMAS resection, or “SMASectomy”).. For more information, see the link below:

James Bonaparte, MD, MSc, FRCSC · Answer

Thanks for the question and a complicated one. The short answer to your question is, no. We do not individual lift each muscle. Think of the smas as a quilt. It is a bunch of connected muscles. All these muscles have different actions but they are connected by tissue. If we were to dissect all the muscles, a facelift would take 20 hours or more! What we do know, is if we pull, move and re-position the Smas as a whole, we can alter the face in predictable ways. This is the key to a good facelift.  In fact, understanding this resulted in a major shift in facelift techniques.So, there is no way to answer how many, which ones as it does not really work this way. Dr James P. Bonaparte, MD, MSc, FRCSCJB Cosmetics and Facial Surgery of OttawaOtolaryngology – Head and Neck SurgeryPracticing in Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery

Larry Weinstein, MD · Answer

A SMAS facelift lasts longer then a skin or periosteal facelift. The SMAS layer is a layer of muscle of the face, predominately addressed by lifting the platysmal muscle, the orbicular is otis muscles and the orbicular is oculi muscles. They are lifted by imbrication sutures to elevate them, reposition them and reposition some of the subcutaneous facial adipose (fat) tissue. Good luck with your selection of a board certified ASAPS plastic surgeon.

Andrew P. Trussler, MD · Answer

The SMAS is a layer of fibrous and fatty tissue that is in continuity with the platysma muscle. The SMAS is above the fascial muscles and the facial nerves. This enables the SMAS to be dissected off of the important structure of the face and provide a tough layer of tissue to help hold a facelift. A subperiosteal facelift lifts the facial muscles.

Mark T. Boschert, MD · Answer

The layer that is tightened duroing a facelift is just above the muscles and it actually helps to pull the muscles in the face, most of them.   And every individual basically has this SMAS lifted slightly differently based upon their needs. Your surgeon will also modify your operation based upon the shape of your face.Good luck!

Brooke R. Seckel, MD, FACS (retired) · Answer

The SMAS is a fibrous extension of the platysma muscles, not an actual muscle, which is attached to all of the underlying facial muscles and structures.The SMAS is tightened during a facelift and secondarily tightens all of the underlying facial structures.

Francis R. Palmer, III, MD (retired) · Answer

Hi, the SMAS is a remnant layer of thin muscle covering the outside portion of the face (by the ears) that joins and combines with a thicker muscle across the neck called the Platysma.  The SMAS layer lies just below, or deep to, the subcutaneous facial fat but above the Parotid (large salivary gland in the face) and the muscles that move the face.  The reason that the SMAS is dissected, lifted, trimmed and re-sutured during any type of effective facelift is that it allows significantly more lifting and tightening than using the skin layer alone (pre 1980 facelifts).  In other words the SMAS is pulled tight so more loose skin can be removed without creating the "wind-swept" appearance.  We use this technique in our minimally invasive facelift.   For a facelift to be effective, the underlying SMAS layer, of the face, must be dissected, lifted, trimmed and re-sutured (not merely folded or suspended with threads or sutures that will not last).  The excess skin is then removed and the facelift incisions closed.My most popular facelift is the minimally invasive, short incision facelift that has all the benefits of more invasive facelifts (traditional, mid-face and subperiosteal facelifts) but with these added benefits:very small incisionsminimal tissue dissection = less bruising and swelling = rapid recoverycan be performed in 90 minutes or less, with or without general anesthesiano incisions within the hair = no hair lossexcess fat can be removedexcess skin removedcheeks, chin and jaw line can be augmented with dermal fillers (I prefer Perlane) or facial implantsmost patients fly back home to parts all over the world in as little as 3 days post-opHope this helps.

Is SMAS a group of muscles?

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