Dear Cathy,
The “Thread Lift” is a procedure during which small plastic “threads” are passed beneath the facial and neck skin on a needle to lift sagging facial skin. The “threads have small “barbs on them which attach to the undersurface of the skin and pull the skin tight when the “thread” is pulled from above and attached to the tissues above the face and neck.
Proponents of the “thread lift” mention that incisions in the face are not required although occasionally the threads do need to be removed, a procedure that does require incisions, which can leave scars. Some physicians report that the results of the “Thread Lift” do not last and that the facial skin sags again after as early as two months. Some patients have reported very unhappy results.
The ‘lifestyle lift” is a modification of the face-lift procedure using smaller incisions and usually done under local anesthesia, purports to require a shorter recovery time.
Both of these procedures are heavily marketed on the web. The most important thing for you is to find a good, ethical, experienced doctor who can advise you as to the best procedure to achieve the result you desire. Let the doctor decide which procedure is best for you. You are not shopping for a car or other consumer item. You are seeking medical care and need the expertise of a board certified plastic surgeon to advise you.
The aesthetic outcome and duration of the results of any face-lift, lifestyle lift or standard Face-lift is determined by several factors.
First, the type of facial skin, your age, and the degree of facial aging are very important. Generally, the younger you are, the less the degree of facial aging, and the thicker your skin, the longer your face-lift will last. Patients with very thin skin, that is very fair skin like a red head or very fair blond hair-blue eyes and severe wrinkling and skin laxity may see recurrence of facial laxity and aging changes as early as two years after a face-lift. Patients with darker, thicker skin, that is brown hair, brown eyes, and darker skin, who have mainly facial sagging along the jaw and neck and are younger, 35-60 years old, can, if the face-lift is done by an EXPERIENCED Board Certified Plastic Surgeon, using modern techniques which include tightening of the muscles and SMAS tissues beneath the facial skin, can get a satisfactory result that lasts 15 years.
Second, the type of face-lift procedure is, in my opinion, a very important determinant of the duration of face-lift results. Some surgeons simply remove a small amount of skin around the ear and pull the skin tight and suture the skin closed. This is often referred to as a mini-lift, weekend lift, minimally invasive lift, face tuck or other marketing term to indicate a minimal procedure. I have seen patients who have had this type of surgery who feel their results have lasted only a few months. In my opinion, and my practice, a proper face-lift needs to include tightening of the tissues beneath the facial skin as well as the skin using well-established modern face-lifting techniques to obtain a pleasing facial rejuvenation, which lasts. The recovery time and bruising are usually no different from the minor or mini face-lift techniques, and in my hands the results are ALWAYS better than with simple skin excision.
The MOST IMPORTANT recommendation I can give you is to seek the opinion of two Board Certified Plastic Surgeons who are very experienced in Facial rejuvenation surgery
