Illinois/Chicago Area Plastic Surgery Procedures:
Facelift (Rhytidectomy)

As people naturally age, the facial skin loses its elasticity, and underlying structures such as fat and muscle atrophy, or shrink. This leads to a "sagging" of the facial structures, as it loses the inverted triangular appearance of youth and becomes more ovoid in shape. Jowls and deep wrinkles develop, often compounded by years of sun damage or smoking.

These moderate to severe signs of facial aging are most often best-addressed by formal facelift, or what is clinically known as a "rhytidectomy". During this procedure, incisions hidden in the hairline and along the ears are made to access the deeper muscular and fascial structures, which are "lifted" and secured in an appropriate direction, after which excess skin is trimmed away at the incision lines. A sagging, ill-defined neckline (and underlying visible muscular bands) are often addressed concurrently via this approach.

Generally, Dr. Steinwald will either recommend "The San Francisco Facelift", which is a full, deep-plane facelift/necklift (utilizing a combination of sophisticated techniques Dr. Steinwald learned from several expert facelift surgeons while training in San Francisco), or a "mini-facelift" for patients with earlier signs of facial aging. This features shorter scars behind the ears, avoids the chin incision, and requires less time to perform, with less post-operative downtime as well.

The best candidates for a facelift are motivated, non-smoking women or men with signs of moderate to advanced aging of the lower 2/3 of the face and neck. (Finer wrinkles around the mouth are usually not addressed or helped by these procedures.) A facelift can be performed as an outpatient or overnight stay procedure, under IV sedation or general anesthesia.

In the interest of patient privacy/HIPPA laws, we have taken down full-facial photos from the gallery, but instead will be able to review before-and-after photos with you in our office during a private consultation.

For additional information regarding facelifts, please see the American Society of Plastic Surgery website.

Contact our office today to schedule your private consultation. We encourage you to click here for your printable certificate good for $50 off your surgical consultation.

(Link references used with permission from the ASPS; our approach to certain problems may differ from those described by the ASPS.)