Why do some people have sutures in the front of their ears when they have a neck lift and others do not?

If the neck work can be done by tightening the platysma muscle with an incision under the chin, and a small incision behind the ear to take up a bit of extra neck skin or place a suspension suture, then no incision in front of the ear is needed.However, often there is laxity of neck and jowl skin as well, or significant laxity of the platysma. Unless the exposure of the underlying tissues of the lower face is adequate, the results will suffer greatly.  An incision in front of the ear as well, gives access to the entire lower face and neck to do whatever needs to be done.

Great question. You know, the boundary between a formal "neck lift" and a "facelift" can be blurry.  Some people may tell you they had a neck lift but in fact had a neck lift with some form of a facelift. It all depends on the desired result you hope to achieve as well as the extent of the problem you are dealing with. If you do a standard neck lift, you often get a scar behind the ear and maby under the chin. However, if you have some jowling you will need the sutures in front of the ear as this is a form of a facelift. When deciding on what procedure is best, here at my Facial Plastic Surgery clinic in Ottawa, Canada i make sure patients understand what the effect will be and what is required to achieve their effect. If you are interested in rejuvenating your neck and/or face, i suggest you speak to a qualified surgeon in your area to determine what the best option is for you.Dr. James P. BonaparteOtolaryngology  - Head and Neck SurgeryFacial Plastic and Reconstructive SurgeryOttawa, Ontario, Canada

A platysmaplasty (under chin incision) is most commonly done for turkey necks and cost only $5500 under local where a lower face jawline and neck lift run around $8800 on special under local but there is more tightening and there are sutures in the ear as well as behind. sincerely, David Hansen,MD

"Neck lift" is a collective term that can be used to describe a number of very different procedures. The least invasive option involves removal of excess fat and tightening of the neck muscles through a short (1-1.5 inch) incision under the chin.  No additional incisions in front or behind the ears is made.  Downside of this approach is that the skin of the neck may not fully tighten and some laxity will remain. The next option involves tightening of the neck muscles and partial removal of the excess skin through incisions that are hidden behind the ears. This variant of the neck lift can significantly improve neck contour and requires only partial incisions that, once healed, are quite hard to notice. The most complete (and the most effective option) is a neck lift in combination with a facelift. With this option you can get the best and most lasting results at the expense of a somewhat bigger procedure and slightly longer incision lines that are placed in front and behind the ears. Hope this helps,Dr. Konstantin

Sutures in front of ear or not. If a patient is having only the neck lifted then there r no sutures in front of the ear. However if they are having a facelift to get rid of jowls and excess skin then they have stitches in front of the ear( or as I have done for 35 years INSIDE THE EAR )so there is no scar in front of the ear. 

 In our practice, a neck lift is only addressing tightening of the  neck muscles and removal of fatty deposits in the neck. A neck lift does not remove excess skin. When loose, and elastic skin is present, a face and neck lift is performed which involves incisions in front of the ears. For many examples of both procedures, please see the link and video below

When I perform a PURE neck lift, my incisions are placed under the chin and behind the ears.  Sometimes it is necessary to perform a lower face lift in conjunction with a neck lift.  This is particularly true in cases where there is a particular redundnacy of skin.  If this is the case, the incision may need to be carried in front of the ear.  When a lower face lift is necessary, for optimal camouflage, I actually hide my incision behind the tragus of the ear.  Some surgeons, however, place the incision in front of the tragus, which results in more scar visibility.  If you are considering this procedure, the best thing to do would be to seek the consultation of a facial
plastic surgeon or plastic surgeon and have a physical exam performed.
Realistic expectations and technique options with pros and cons of each could be discussed at that time.  I wish you well!

Thank you for your question and I agree totally with. Dr Mayer.  Essentially the amount of incisions is a function of the extent of the procedure.Dr Corbin

When I do a neck lift only, there are virtually no sutures in front of ears but with a facelift, which usually for me involves a neck lift, sutures or scars are not only in front of the ear but also in back of the ears.

To address the face and neck, the incision is made inside the ear, and behind the ear.  However the incision you may see sometimes by other surgeons that is in front of the ear is also most likely a facelift procedure that was called a mini lift.  Consult with a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon to discuss your options and expectations.