As time marches on, people are bound to reflect their advancing age in perhaps the most prominent of areas: the face. When these changes occur sooner or more conspicuously than someone would prefer, there are a handful of options to reverse the apparent effects of age. Plastic surgery options such as a facelift often provide excellent results, allowing patients to look and feel younger for years. Still, each technique is limited to a certain area or feature of the face. A combination of treatments may therefore yield the best outcome for some patients.
With a full facelift and chemical peel, patients benefit from the complementary results of these two notably different procedures. If you are looking for a veritable makeover that will greatly reduce the effects of aging in your face, consider the benefits of these techniques, as offered by our Edina plastic surgery office.
The Benefits of a Facelift
A full facelift doesn’t just tighten the skin; it also removes excess tissue and repositions the muscles responsible for drooping facial features. In this way, a facelift is one of the most direct, effective, and long-lasting ways to restore a youthful look to the middle and lower portions of the face.
- Sagging skin can be lifted and tightened in the cheeks, around the mouth, at the jawline, and in the upper neck.
- Creases can be reduced around the nasolabial folds – the area around the edges of the nose and mouth.
- Loose muscles and fat can be shifted or removed, revealing the natural contours of the face that are indicative of youth and health.
- The skin is pulled tightly to the sides of the face and upward, creating a firmer and smoother look.
The Benefits of a Chemical Peel
Although a facelift can tighten skin and correct many signs of aging that occur from subcutaneous tissues, it does not change the surface of the skin itself, which may be responsible for additional cosmetic blemishes. With a chemical peel, patients can improve each of the following:
- Wrinkles
- Age spots
- Sun damage
- Superficial scars
- Rough skin
- Discoloration
It is also important to note that, unlike a facelift, a chemical peel can address all of a patient’s facial skin. This makes the procedure especially helpful for patients who have wrinkles and blemishes around the forehead in addition to the features they hope to correct with a facelift.
Candidates for a Facelift and Chemical Peel
The results of a facelift and chemical peel are markedly more dramatic than those of either procedure alone. Therefore, patients seeking this treatment combination should be looking for a significant cosmetic improvement. Between tighter, more pronounced facial features and rejuvenated skin, patients can shave multiple years off of their appearance, making the results quite noticeable to others.
Since a facelift and chemical peel are two separate procedures, patients need to be deemed good candidates for each. To undergo a facelift, patients should be in good overall health with the ability to recover safely from surgery. Any diseases or conditions that may threaten recovery should be considered a risk factor, including but not limited to systemic diseases, bleeding disorders, and a history of blood clotting complications.
Chemical peels pose relatively few risks, but do have the potential to lighten skin and thus result in uneven pigmentation. This risk is increased for patients with darker skin and with deeper peels. Speak with your plastic surgeon to gain a better understanding of whether you are a good candidate for this treatment.
Which Treatment Is Right for You?
While each treatment option may be distinct, it can be difficult to discern which one can best address a patient’s particular concerns. Whether you will benefit from a facelift, chemical peel, or both, our practice is committed to providing cosmetic treatment that is safe and most appropriate for you. Schedule an initial consultation with us to learn exactly what you can expect from these or any other of our procedures.