Difference Between Quick Lift and Standard Lift?

Will a "quicklift" be right for you?  It depends on your issues.  However, it is my feeling that it is almost not worth having a facelift unless the neck is addressed.  Miniface lift techniques do not address the midline neck issues.  The dilemma with a quicklift is that due to its proprietary nature, if you see someone who offers this service, they usually do not perform a full range of facelifting procedures.  In my opinion, you are far better off seeing an established facelift surgeon who does not need to rely on major marketing to be successful in their facelift practice.  They may be more expensive than the "facelift shop" down the street but it is better to get the right facelift rather than a particular facelift.  In a small incision facelift is right for you, you can be sure that for an experienced facelift surgeon, this will be a considered option for addressing your facial aging.  There is much to be said for the so-called standard facelift.  What is standard about it is that a very experienced surgeon designs a surgery that is uniquely right for you.

Quick Lift vs LiteLift™ vs Standard or Traditional Facelift -These are all variations of facelifts that will mostly depend on the skill and experience of the surgeon.
The incision is shorter with a Quick Lift or LiteLift™.
The muscle and skin pull is more verticle.
Neither correct eyelids, all should correct jowels and most of the neck.

. Here are the basic differences between a Standard (also called full or traditional facelift) and a Mini Facelift (such as "Quick Lift", "Lite Lift", "S" lift, MACS lift, etc)

 

A full or "traditional" facelift addresses the sagging upper and lower neck skin and (platysmal) vertical neck bands, jowls,  lower and mid nasolabial folds and marionette lines. It involves incisions from the temple scalp, along the front of the ear (inside the mid part for women), behind the ear in the crease then along or into the scalp hair behind the ear towards the back of your neck with undermining of the skin and  tightening of underlying support tissues.

A mini-facelift, or "short scar facelift" such as a Quick Lift  or as I call it in my practice a LiteLift addresses all of the above except for the lower neck. The difference is that the incisions are shorter - basically the same description in front of the ear and temple scalp but ending at the level of the earlobe (in front or in back) - as much as 40% less scarring. We do most of these procedures with oral sedation and local anesthesia without IV's or general anesthesia

Unlike a "conventional” traditional facelift which often involves more extensive surgery and pulls more horizontally, the QuickLift is a more abbreviated facelift that addresses the mid to lower portion of the face as well as the upper neck by lifting the face in a more upward vector.  The QuickLift lifts the underlying musculature of the lower face the (SMAS).  By lifting the mid to lower portion of the face, fullness and volume is restored to the cheeks, the jawline is tightened, improving the appearance of sagging jowls and excessive skin under the chin (turkey neck).    One benefit of the QuickLift procedure is that it can be performed in about an hour or two using local anesthesia as opposed to more complex sedative anesthesia which increases patient risk and short term recovery.  In my experience, patients in general who choose the Quicklift find the surgery to be simpler and faster, and the recovery process to be easier compared to my traditional facelift surgery as there is typically less swelling and bruising and post recovery issues. 

However, as with any plastic surgery procedure, the QuickLift is not one size fits all. The patient’s physical characteristics, areas of concern and expectation play a major role in what selection of procedures that I might recommend. For example, if additional facial rejuvenation procedures are added, such as a brow lift, lower neck lift or cosmetic eyelid procedure, both the surgical time and recovery time will increase. However, as any qualified cosmetic plastic surgeon should tell you, it is the end result which is of prime importance while still addressing the core concerns and wishes of the patient.

A "standard facelift" is a full facelift--cheeks and NECK!! It is not a minilift variety of just lifting  the cheek for a short distance. You get what you pay for.

Quick Lift refers to the shorter time the surgeon spends in the operating room before he/she runs off to cash your check! This is necessary because they have to get your money BEFORE you have the opportunity to see there is little or NO improvement!

Well, not really, but unfortunately, this is not far from the truth.

"Quick Lift" is a marketing term meant to convey the (mostly incorrect and hyped) idea that you can have a "quick" surgery, minimal "down-time," lower cost (surprisingly, not always!), and still get the results of the "standard" facelift. It's often offered as a "local anesthesia" (no nasty general anesthesia) operation, and is usually performed in a "clinic" rather than an accredited surgical facility or hospital. More for less . . . just what everyone wants, right?

There is a reason "standard" procedures are performed by the majority of ethical and experienced ABPS-certified plastic surgeons. Many of these other "named" marketing-hype operations are performed by non-plastic surgeons or doctors "certified" by bogus boards, without the full training, experience, and skill of "real" plastic surgeons. You might luck out and get a reasonable result without complication, but the improvement is usually limited, and the duration of improvement short. This happens even with "full" or "Standard" lifts in some cases, so whatever you get with less time, less incision, and less skillful technique is simply unnecessary cost, risk, and often the need for costly repairs and additional (proper) surgery.

Not every limited-incision facelift is automatically bad, but beware the marketing hype, and be immediately suspicious of anyone who offers "just as good or better" for "less time and less cost and less healing!"

 

Facial cosmetic surgery changed significantly over the years.There are a lot of marketing terms such as quick lift, lunch time lift, silouette lift and so on which promise almost as good an improvement as a "standard or traditional" facelift. The only guarantee these procedures give you is the significant wallet biopsy and many times costly repairs. Everyone is different and requires an individualed approach to give the right diagnosis and proper treatment. The world is more complex than a hammer and a nail. You need to see a board certified plastic surgeon who can discuss your best options to rejuvenate the face (address the issues of skin, muscle and bone ageing) not just suspend your skin on barbed sutures like a marrionette. 

Hello, and thank you for your question. While both a full facelift and a QuickLift can give you long-lasting facial rejuvenation, the procedures differ in a fundamental way, and which procedure is right for you will depend on how much rejuvenation you need. A full facelift lifts the muscular and connective tissues in the deep tissues of the face and can rejuvenate the entire face. A QuickLift, on the other hand, treats the muscular supports of your face and rejuvenates the mid and lower regions of the face. For this reason, a QuickLift is a better procedure for those who have less facial skin laxity and need less rejuvenation overall. It also offers a shorter procedure and recovery time. Talk to a local board-certified plastic surgeon in your area to see if a QuickLift is right for your facial rejuvenation needs. I wish you good health.
- Daniel Lensink, MD

A comprehensive lower face and neck lift takes approximately 3 hours to perform under general anesthesia, and is not quick by any means.  In our practice, the comprehensive facelift procedure involves tightening the SMAS and jowls, neck muscles in 3 locations, a platysma-plasty, removal of fat above and below the platysma muscle, and conservatively tightening excess neck and face skin. For many examples, please see the link below to our face lift photo Gallery

with many of the comments here.

Particularly "The dilemma with a quicklift is that due to its proprietary nature, if you see someone who offers this service, they usually do not perform a full range of facelifting procedures." from Dr Steinsapir.

The Quicklift is just another technique used in facelifting. I use it more often than not but not at the exclusion of all others. As a Quicklift surgeon I am not prevented from offering the full range of facelift surgery to my patients. I however CHOOSE it as my base procedure having tried most others. I find my patients prefer the shorter recovery time and I get a predictable long lasting result. 

The "branded" name Quicklift is often used pejoratively by surgeons who actually have no idea what the lift entails, they just lump it in with all "mini-facelifting" and dismiss it.

I have performed, and seen the results of deep plane, SMAS plication, SMAS imbrication and many other lifts. I prefer the risk profile and outcome of the Quicklift technique. 

I would imagine I were to call it a triple concentric SMAS plication facelift and platysmaplasty noone would question it!.

The best thing to do is find a surgeon you trust, who can show examples (even introduce you to former patients) and who is certified with their respective board.

Then it is down to mother nature!