How painful is a facelift under local anesthesia?

The only reason to undergo a facelift under local anesthesia is the "save" money or the the doctor does not not have privileges or access to a certified surgery facility. It is critically important for the patient to be relaxed, comfortable, and be monitored throughout the surgery. Under local alone, it would be difficult to lift and reposition the deep structures that need to be addressed. I would not recommend undergoing a facelift under local anesthesia alone.

Facelifts a generally not considered painful due to modern surgical techniques and effective pain management. During the procedure, patients are under anesthesia, so they feel no pain. Post-operatively, any discomfort is usually manageable with prescribed pain medication and subsides within a few days. Most patients describe the sensation as more of a tightness or soreness rather than significant pain. Our priority is to ensure your comfort throughout the process.

Hi, facelift under local anesthesia does not hurt much. The first ten minutes it burns a little as the lidocaine is injected, then you just feel some pushing and pulling. I do local facelift surgeries and other surgeries frequently, and facelift under local anesthesia is much less discomfort then liposuction under local anesthesia. Half the patients fall asleep during the surgery.

I appreciate your concerns Roy however it depends on the type of oral sedation used with local anesthesia during facelift.
While this certainly is an option, it has been my experience that patients are far more comfortable either with local anesthesia and IV sedation administered by an anesthesiologist or general anesthesia where the patient is completely asleep. In these cases the patient feels nothing it is very comfortable. Come see me or another board-certified plastic surgeon in our area to explore the best options for you. Good luck.

It would be very difficult to do a thorough facelift under local anesthesia and have it be a good experience. This is not a procedure where you want to look for shortcuts to save money.

Dear Prettyboyroy,
Yes, needles and scalpels hurt. So pick your anesthetic options carefully.
Pain and discomfort are an expected effect of any surgery. At the time of stimulating a pain fiber during surgery other activities occur which may affect you (adjacent bleeding, movement, conscious awareness and memory, blood pressure elevation and cardiac rhythm changes) and the surgeon (proper maneuvering, selection and toxicity of local and topical anesthetic) and your surgical outcome (less than desired or expected result).
So, picking the right anesthetic for your procedure is equally paramount as are other features like 1 layer / 2 layer, SMAS lift / deep face lift, additional procedures (eyes, forehead, nose, neck, liposuction, fat and filler injection and others) medical history, recover, risks, costs and many more.
Depending on the level of consciousness:
• fully aware,
• partially aware but somnolent with a startle potential,
• deep sedation with or without dissociation,
• deepest sleep and need for respiratory assistance

Different anesthetic alternatives are considered with different levels of risk. There are various classes of pain and consciousness control. Each one has varying and overlapping levels of action and risk.
1. NON-OPIOID ANALGESICS AND SEDATIVES: Tylenol, aspirin and non-steroidal pain moderators, non-Rx supplements, Benadryl and other anti-histamines, alcohol, marijuana, medical marijuana, CBD and any other non-prescribed supplements and medications.
2. LOCAL (topical or injected) ANESTHETIC
3. NARCOTICS, BENZODIAZEPINES, DISSOCIATIVE MEDICATIONS, NITROUS OXIDE
4. INTRAVENOUS (IV) SEDATIVES and/or INHALANT ANESTHETICS are available in a properly accredited operating room. They are to partially or fully place a patient in differing levels of consciousness including the need for breathing assistance.
You, your medical iinternist, your surgeon and your anesthesiology provider will determine which is best for you.
!! The deepest levels of consciousness do not necessarily heighten the risk and may in fact provide the best environment for a good experience, calm surgeon, and your best result.
I hope this long-winded answer is helpful. All the best!

We use intravenous sedation with local anesthetic for all of our facelifts. This allows the patient to be completely comfortable during the procedure and the long acting local anesthetic minimizes postoperative pain. Most patients will report mild to moderate tightness, numbness and soreness in the treated areas of the face but its rare to have severe pain. If you use just local anesthetics without sedation you will feel every injection and the discomfort will be more significant.

If you were having a mini facelift of some sort (I don't favor those), it might be possible to have a local anesthetic but a real facelift is too long and too much to do under local IMO.