Does a lower facelift stretch the mouth out from side to side?

A vertically oriented facelift like the MACS Lift or LiteLift prevents the unnatural appearance such as "stretching the mouth" as you described. It seems rational that the more extensive a procedure is, the more dramatic and long lasting the outcome will be but this is not always true. Though there is still a place for the traditional facelift, with it there is also increased recovery time and potential for problems. By using advanced techniques deep to the skin, we are able to minimize external skin incisions and scarring. For example, placing the scar within portions of the ear and ending the incision behind the earlobe crease eliminates the usual telltale scar of a full facelift. Similarly, repositioning the incisions to hide them is also used. For example, beveling the incisions just behind the hairline allows the sideburn not to be displaced too high while allowing hair to grow through the scar to conceal it. In contrast to the traditional facelift, the Lite-Lift™ re-draping of skin is upward, a more natural, antigravity, direction eliminating the “swept away” unnatural pull too often seen in Hollywood stars with older facelift techniques. These and other advanced techniques along with modifications and innovations by Dr. Nichter is what make up the essence of the Lite Lift™.

Yes, there is a way to avoid this.  The best way to prevent this is to have a plastic surgeon who understands how you're aging.  The mouth should never be pulled in a facelift unless the surgeon is overpulling. Generally, the mouth is treated with volume and resurfacing, not pulling.  Once you have a facelift, volume will be needed to lift the midface and that will help address the corners of the mouth; the marionette grooves can then be treated for bony volume loss and soft tissue volume loss as both contribute to aging in this area.  If you have lines around the mouth, those can improve with skin resurfacing. 

The “stretched” look you are referring to comes from a poorly executed lower face lift. The skin needs to be pulled mainly vertically to give a more natural result.  Pulling in a mainly horizontal position can create an unnatural appearance.  The underlying muscle should also be tightened. In some patients, facial fat grafting is recommended smoothen the marionette lines in addition to the lower facelift.  You need to find a facial plastic surgeon who understands anatomy if you want a result that looks rejuvenating without being “done.” I hope this helps.

Thank you for your question. With the goal of a natural result, a properly done lower facelift will not distort the corners of the mouth. An overly aggressive lift could stretch on the mouth but this should improve as it loosens over time. A lower facelift targets the lower 1/3 of the face (and neck) and would improve any jowling and marionette lines, but fillers may be needed for residual defects. I hope this helps!

In short, no - a properly performed facelift (usually with deeper tightening of the supportive "SMAS" tissues - as opposed to just skin layers - in the appropriate vectors) should nicely smooth those areas, without producing an unnatural "tight" or "swept" look, especially at the corner of the mouth.  A facelift with usually soften the nasolabial lines (from lateral nose to corner of mouth), as well as the marionette lines below, as well as the jowling effect along the jawline lateral to this, but I caution patients that it does not directly treat the immediate perioral or lip/chin areas.  Soft tissue filler may be used at the time of a facelift to (temporarily) improve these areas, but a more long-lasting approach generally includes micro-fat transfer to the cheek and/or resistant deeper "grooves", and possibly laser or dermabrastion treatments in the perioral areas.  Thank you for your question and best of luck to you.

A properly done lower facelift will not distort the corners of your mouth.  It will improve skin sagging and the marionette lines to a considerable degree.  Fillers may need to be done in addition to some of the deeper lines.

A facelift procedure should not stretch your mouth out on the sides.  Both the skin and the underlying muscle are tightened and pulled in a specific direction called the vector.   There should not be any real tension on the corners of the mouth.  Sometimes patients who have very deep wrinkling around the mouth area show some reorientation of these lines when the jowls are pulled up.This can give a somewhat unnatural appearance in a small minority of patients which is usually temporary. Most of these patients also have some volume loss that can be augmented to help improve the appearance.  Lastly, keep in mind that most patients only notice the "bad" facelifts.  The majority of facelift patients achieve nice results and simply look more youthful and refreshed, and not necessarily as if they have had a facelift.

     The key is to identify a surgeon who does not create this appearance.  This is largely due to dissection and vector of pull and is technique dependent.Kenneth Hughes, MDLos Angeles, CA

The purpose of a facelift is to correct jowls, sagging jawline and cheeks but has very little impact on the corner of the mouth and you don't want it to do so. The muscles of the lip and mouth create marionette lines and a facelift should not involve those muscles. There are non-surgical treatments for that area.

Does facelift stretch the mouth? NO--if done by an experienced rhinoplasty surgeon. it should remove excess skin without a puller look!