Why am I seeing the same marionette lines as before full facelift 3 weeks later?

The marionette area may not be helped by a facelift. Often when you see people that look too tight it is because they went after this area with a lateral pull and ended up making the person look as if they were in a wind tunnel. An excision in this area if it is due to extra skin or possibly a filler can help. If it is due to lines around the lips you will need resurfacing by either laser or peel. For the really deep lines, filler can help as well.
Be sure to discuss with your surgeon how this area can be improved.

You may still notice some improvement after the swelling subsides, however wrinkles and folds may not be corrected from a Facelift alone. This is especially so with any perioral wrinkles including the marionette lines. If not resolved from a facelift and fat grafting, you may need to consider additional procedures such as fillers or a marionette line incision that can be done under local anesthesia.

These lines may not completely resolve with a facelift although they should be significantly better, specially with fat grafting in the area.  If these are very fine lines, a perioral peel can help. 

Thanks for the question.It's too early to talk about final results. When we perform a facelift we try not to let stigmas as the brands that you mean. I recommend to wait at least a month when the swelling has decrease to see and give an opinion of the surgery. Also, i recommend you to send your photos to us to give you more information of your interest.Respectfully,Dr. Emmanuel Mallol Cotes.-

Facelifts are a wonderful technique for treating jowls and redundant skin of the neck in addition to descent of the cheeks. It is not unfortunately as good a technique for taking care of wrinkles especially around the mouth. Fat Transfers can help but if your wrinkles are etched into the skin fat injections are limited in effectiveness. It is not uncommon to utilize hyaluronic gel injections following a facelift for this reason.

Hello.  Thank you for your question.  No pictures were provided, so it is difficult to assess your concerns.  You are still early in the healing process.  There is likely to be some residual swelling that could make the marionette lines look a little deeper.  It will take several months for your body to complete the healing process and to realize the final postoperative result.  In my experience, the results of fat grafting to the midface for marionette lines and nasolabial folds improve over several months as the grafted fat cells start to thrive in their new location and blend into the surrounding tissues.  I would encourage you to be patient with the healing process, communicate your concerns to your surgeon, and try not to worry yourself unnecessarily.  Best of luck to you!  I hope this information is helpful.

Dear seluj,It will take approximately 6 months until you are fully healed. I suggest you consult your board certified facial plastic surgeon to voice your concerns and to determine how he/she believes your healing process is going. Most patients experience bruising and swelling - to different degrees - during the first four weeks. Remain patient as follow your recovery guidelines diligently.

Really need to see some photos to see your concerns.  At 3 weeks you will still have swelling.  If your swelling is sitting in that area, it may make the marionette lines look deep.  As the cheek edema resolves, this will improve.  Fat placed into this area will create more edema initially.  

3 weeks after a facelift is too early to judge the results.  You are healing and there swelling is present.  If you had a facelift and fat grafting to the area, I am sure the area will be much improved during the final result.  It will be important for you to review your before and after pictures to objectively judge the results.I would be patient and let yourself heal at this time.I hope this helps.  

It is not uncommon to be swollen and have lumps and bumps after a facelift with fat grafting. It is only 3 weeks out. Allow yourself some time to heal. Glad to hear that your parotic leak has resolved.Hope this helps,Dr. Gus Diaz