Facelift

Washington, DC
By Dr. Rondi Walker
Board Certified Plastic Surgeon

As you age, the effects of gravity, exposure to the sun, and even the daily stress of life can show up on your face. Deep creases can form between your nose and mouth, your jaw line may become loose, and jowly folds and fat deposits may appear around your neck. A facelift can set back the clock and improve the most visible signs of aging by repositioning excess fat, tightening muscles, and will re-drape the skin of your face and neck. A facelift can be performed alone or in conjunction with a neck lift (link to neck lift) for an overall youthful appearance.

The Facelift

A facelift, also known as rhytidectomy or meloplasty is a cosmetic surgical procedure which aims to erase the signs of aging and restore the youthful appearance in the face and neck. As a board certified plastic surgeon, Dr. Walker’s unique approach to a facelift surgery, with carefully placed, hidden incision lines allows her to lift, redrape and trim excess skin from the face and neck resulting in the most natural final result.

Why A Facelift

So many factors in our daily life contribute to the premature loss of volume and sagginess in our face; factors such as gravity, stress, environment or simply our genetic predisposition to aging.

You are a candidate for a facelift if:

• Your face is sagging in the middle
• Your face looks empty due to loss of fat
• The lower part of your face has developed jowls
• Your face is not oval but square
• You have hollowness and deep wrinkles under your lower lids
• The skin under your jaw bone and chin sags, creating a double chin effect or turkey gobbler look

The Consultation

At Walker Plastic Surgery, Dr. Walker believes in a thorough consultation for her patients considering facelift surgery. As a member of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, she has met the most rigorous of standards of her profession. By choosing Dr. Walker for your facelift surgery, you can be assured that you are in the hands of the most qualified and highly trained of plastic surgeons. During your consultation, Dr. Walker will discuss your concerns and specific problem areas to help you decide which procedure fits your needs.

Patients from Washington, DC and the entire DC and New York Metropolitan areas seek Dr. Walker for her years of experience in facelift surgery and the other various techniques she may implement as options during your consultation for your facelift surgery. Other approaches to a facelift procedure include:

• A Micro Facelift, the “young” facelift. Performed with one small V-incision in the hairline sideburn and minimal liposuction of the jowls.
• A Mini facelift, if your sagginess and wrinkles are not severe requiring partial incisions and a faster recovery time.
• A Lower Facelift, if the sagginess and lose skin is limited to the lower part of your face, requiring smaller incisions that go around the front and back of the ears only.
• A Midfacelift, if your loss of skin tone is concentrated in the triangle that spans from the outer corners of your eyelids to the corners of your lips and you are sagging in the middle of your face only. This procedure is usually combined with a temporoplasty or browlift, and the incisions are in the hair of the scalp.
• A Neck lift, addresses loose skin under the chin and neck only
• A Silhouette Lift, if you are looking for a nonsurgical approach using absorbable threads to lift and reposition the sagginess in the middle of your face and along your jawline.

But if you meet all the factors mentioned in “Why a Facelift” above, a surgical facelift would be your best option.

The Facelift Procedure

Your form of anesthesia is discussed with you at length prior to your surgery. A traditional facelift is typically performed under general anesthesia or, intravenous IV sedation. Pre-operatively, medications are administered for your comfort during your facelift procedure. Dr. Walker’s facelift surgery uses a carefully places and easily concealed facelift incision beginning in the hairline at the temples, continuing around the ear and ending in the lower scalp. Fat may be sculpted or redistributed from the face, jowls and neck. The underlying tissue is repositioned and commonly, the deeper layers of the face and the muscles are also lifted. Skin is re-draped over the uplifted contours and any excess skin is trimmed away. Once healed, the incision lines from a facelift are well concealed within the hairline and in the natural contours of the face and ear.

What to Expect After Surgery

Detailed postoperative instructions are given to you after your surgery including specific instructions on recovery. All your questions regarding your medication, bandages care, suture removal and follow up appointments will be addressed. The visible improvements of your facelift appear as your swelling and bruising subside. Your final result will not only restore a more youthful and rested appearance, but also help you feel more confident about yourself.

Q & A

Is a facelift painful?

The goal of anesthesia and the medications administered during and after your procedure is to make you undergo your surgery with the least amount of discomfort. Pain, if any is controlled postoperatively which leaves you with a slight feeling of tightness in the first week of your recovery.

How long before I see my facelift results?

You will see your results immediately once your bandages are removed. However, your final results will only be visible once your swelling and bruising subsides, a process that could take a week to ten days. Your improvement will continue each following week while your final results may take a few weeks to a month.

How long does a facelift result last?

This is where the skills of your surgeon and the type of facelift you receive comes into play. At Walker Plastic Surgery, Dr. Walker prides herself in offering her patients long lasting results from their traditional facelift surgery. An average of ten to fifteen years with a full facelift and close to five years with a minifacelift.

How much does a facelift cost?

The cost of your facelift is determined by many factors, which makes it hard to provide an exact cost, and one should be weary of those who do. Your cost is a combination of your surgeon’s fee, facility and anesthesia fees and medications. The cost also changes when combined with other procedures that may enhance your facelift surgery, such as upper and lower eyelid surgery, brow lift or neck lift. For a best cost estimate, you should visit your plastic surgeon for a consultation.

For over two decades, Dr. Rondi Walker has been providing her patients in Washington, DC. with her skilled approach to facelift surgery. Board certified in both plastic surgery and Otolaryngology, and a member of The American Society of Plastic Surgeons and The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, patients seek her for her ability to offer an unsurpassed natural youthful result. Dr. Walker’s goal when performing facelift surgery is to shift the facial tissue and not just the superficial layers of your skin, which can create the dreaded pulled look. This is how she achieves the result of a naturally refreshed, younger looking face.

Please visit our photo gallery for a look at before and after photos of some of our patients who allowed us to share their results with you. Additional photos are made available for you during your consultation for facelift surgery.

View before and after photos

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