Facelift Procedure, Rhytidectomy Surgery

The age and rapidness that a person shows signs of aging are determined by genetics, exposure to environmental elements, and everyday living activities. For example, sun tanning or smoking accelerates the breakdown of skin and the underlying tissues.

But you can rest easy, as we're one of the premier providers of facelifts in the Grand Rapids area providing facial cosmetic surgery!

 

Achieve A More Youthful Appearance With Dr. Vagotis Without Looking Like You Had Surgery

In recent years, younger patients have turned to facelift plastic surgery because it is a full-measure and a lasting approach to restoration rather than a maintenance treatment. Older patients continue to choose facelift surgery because it allows them to look their best and set the clock back 10-15 years without regular facial contouring and maintenance provided by injectables.

 

Patients come to our practice to seek practical, targeted, and long-term facial rejuvenation through facelift and neck lift procedures. A well-performed surgery by Dr. Vagotis will transform an individual's features to a younger state rather than radically changing one's appearance.

 

• • A toned and younger-looking neck, chin, and jaw

 

• • Smoother features and less prominent wrinkles and folds in the skin

 

• • The added volume in the upper face and cheeks

 

• • A lifted brow and eyes appear more rested and youthful (with the facelift, brow lift, and blepharoplasty)

 

• • Diminished vertical necklines

 

 A facelift may be the right choice if you have visible aging signs on the face and the neck. With Dr. Vagotis, a natural-looking rejuvenation through restorative techniques is offered. Specific improvements may include:

 

• • Returning facial features to a more youthful position

 

• • Bringing back softness and a more balance to the face and skin

 

• • Addressing sagging skin and wrinkles

 

 

Are You a Good Candidate?

The facelift is a highly effective method of improving your physical appearance, and no cremes or other products can come close to achieving the same results as this surgery. 

However, some patients do not fit the criteria according to which candidates are chosen. You are a good candidate for this type of surgery if you have:

 

• • Flexible, elastic skin that will lead to successful healing

 

• • A robust and well-defined bone structure that will provide the necessary support

 

• • Good overall health, on which the healing depends

 

• • Realistic expectations and understanding that the facelift does not stop aging or change the face foundation

 

• • Loose skin, either on the neck or the face, can be tightened by removing the excess skin

 

 

Types of Facelifts Performed by Dr. Vagotis

Once you decide to opt for face-lift surgery, your doctor will conduct the initial consultation to determine the facelift type. While determining this, the doctor considers all factors, such as the recovery length, the patient's expectations, and the specific target areas. 

 

A Complete And Nuanced Approach To Each Age-Related Facial Change

 

In a thoughtful, customized, and multimodality way, Dr. Vagotis approaches the three most apparent age-related facial changes-sagging tissue, lost volume, and reduced skin quality. She lifts what has fallen to restore your natural facial anatomy to what it was 10 or 15 years earlier. 

 

Lost volume is fixed with the latest line of fillers that closely match the body's natural "filler" or with body fat. Finally, she addresses skin texture and quality. These final touch improvements create the crowning achievement utilizing techniques learned by studying under world-renowned plastic surgeon Dr. Bruce Connell.

 

Dr. Vagotis will employ a combination of techniques to achieve an optimal result. This optimal result includes lifting tissue and muscle that has fallen with age. It also includes removing excess skin that has lost its elasticity due to age, gravity, or changes in weight.

 

A complete facelift procedure requires the surgeon to make incisions in the area just above the ears that continue downward closely around the earlobe, circling up behind the ear. The skin of the middle and lower face is then loosened from the underlying tissue. The surgeon will reposition and tighten the underlying connective tissue and muscle. Doctor Vagotis may remove some amount of fat and the excess lax skin. After trimming excess skin, the surgeon closes all incisions with fine sutures. 

 

The options you have are:

 

The Traditional Full Facelift The SMAS Gold-Standard Procedure

 

As your facial skin ages, there is a loss of elasticity in the epidermis, the upper layer of skin, and the SMAS membrane. The SMAS contains the nerves, blood vessels, fat, and fibrous tissue that connects the facial skin to its underlying musculature. Operations that rejuvenate the face ("facelifts") often revise or sculpt this tissue to reduce age-related sagging or drooping. This drooping results in the sagging of your cheeks along the jaw bone, this causes fleshy jowls and often results in a double chin. Cheek fat then sags forward to increase the appearance of the nasolabial folds. Now, the SMAS descends on the lower two-thirds of the face and the neck with aging. The front edge of the muscles in the neck becomes visible and forms the "turkey neck" look.

 

A SMAS facelift counteracts some visible signs of aging by tightening the muscle, removing fat, and trimming excess skin. Rates of adverse reactions to the SMAS facelift are low, and patient satisfaction is very high. Dr. Vagotis considers this procedure so valuable in her skilled hands because of the combination of safety and great results.

 

A complete facelift procedure requires the surgeon to make incisions in the area above the ears and continue downward tightly around the earlobe, circling up in the groove behind the ear before returning into the hairline behind the ear. The skin of the middle and lower face is then lifted from the underlying tissue. The surgeon will reposition and tighten the underlying connective tissue and muscle. Some amount of fat may be removed, and the excess lax skin. 

 

When this procedure is required, the doctor can address various parts of the patient's face, such as the area below the eyes, the sagging that surrounds the cheeks, excess fat under the jaw and chin, lines around the mouth, jowls, and more.

 

Naturally, since this surgery targets a large face area, it requires a long incision. This surgery is usually performed on people with more dramatic aging signs.

 

A Full SMAS Facelift Includes a Neck Lift

 

The SMAS approach to a facelift procedure includes a facelift by its very nature.  There should be no additional cost for the neck lift.

 

Mini Facelift

 

A mini facelift comes with a shorter time for recovery because it involves much smaller incisions than the traditional facelift. The surgery targets a small area, usually the jaw, neck, and lower cheeks. Young people with the first signs of aging are the most common group opting for this procedure.

 

Many factors to consider when contemplating face surgery and neck lift surgery. In most cases, the surgeons aim to make the incisions above the hairline or in places where there are natural facial creases. This incision is made above the hairline because such places will heal better and will better hide the scarring from the surgery.

 

Procedures Often Combined with a Facelift

Other procedures can be combined with a facelift to help achieve a more youthful appearance, such as facial liposuction, lip augmentation, forehead lift, eyelid surgery, facial implants, fat transfer, and nose reshaping.

  

Common Questions About The Facelift Procedure

 

Is Dr. Vagotis well versed in facelifts?

 

Very. Dr. Vagotis did a fellowship in Santa Ana, California, under renowned plastic surgeon Bruce Connell whose technique was highly sought, widely imitated but never duplicated. Dr. Connell is now deceased, and there aren't a lot of other surgeons that have had the privilege or opportunity to study with Dr. Connell. Dr. Vagotis is the only practitioner in the state of Michigan. She's the go-to surgeon in Michigan for facelift procedures and one of the ASPS member surgeons (American Society of Plastic Surgeons)

 

Q. Is financing available for facelift surgery?

 

Yes. We've prepared various options to accommodate your particular financial situation. Please take a look at the financing options available on our financing page.

 

Q. What are my choices for anesthesia?

 

Local anesthesia is available for your procedure. We use a "twilight sleep" anesthetic that does not require intubation. You will not feel pain during your facelift.

 

Q. I'm not sure if I'm ready for a facelift. Are there other options for younger-looking skin?

 

Some people who are unsure about getting a face lifting may want to consider getting a neck lift first. A neck lift is a lesser procedure that can give you great results and help you become more confident with surgical procedures in general. Find out more about the neck lift here.

 

Your Facelift Is Tailored To You

Call Dr. Vagotis today for a free consultation to discuss your facelift or neck lift options. 

 

If you'd like to have a more youthful, refreshed appearance, request your one-on-one from Michigan's finest Plastic Surgeon. This allows the patient to discuss their reasons for wanting a facelift and their personal goals and will enable them to ask questions. This open communication also lets us clear up any misconceptions you may have regarding the procedure. The information gathered during your facelift consultation and a thorough evaluation of your medical history and current health are essential for determining what is "out of place" and how to fix it so that the results you receive meet your unique aesthetic needs. To look as young as you feel!