Nonsurgical Facelift
Every one wants to look younger. Not everyone wants or is ready for a surgical procedure. This type of patient is ideal for a nonsurgical facelift.
Nonsurgical facelifts, just like surgical facelifts, restore and rejuvenate the face. As we age, we lose collagen and elastin. This results in sagging skin, fine lines and wrinkles, loss of elasticity, and loss of volume. As tissues fall, the form of the face also changes. The signs of youth include a full face, lots of volume in the upper 1/3rd of the face, and definition along the jawline and neck. The signs of aging include loss of the volume in the upper 1/3rd of the face, increased volume with loss of definition along the jawline and neck.
So a youthful face is heart shaped, whereas an aged face is round or square.
Types of nonsurgical facelifts
Liquid Lift or Liquid Facelift
A liquid lift is a cosmetic procedure designed to rejuvenate the face using dermal fillers and neuromodulators. Another name for this procedure is a liquid facelift. Dermal fillers are injectable agents such as Restylane, Juvederm, and Sculptra that increase volume. These agents are injected into the tissues to restore volume, and create a slight lifting effect.
Restylane and Juvederm fall into the category of hyaluronic acid fillers. These filler agents look like a gel, and they work by drawing water into the tissues and holding on to water. Common injection sites include:
- Smile lines or melolabial folds
- Marionette lines
- Jaw line
- Chin
- Cheeks
- Under eyes
- Lips
Hyaluronic acid fillers usually last 6-12 months depending on what type of filler is used and where it is injected.
Sculptra is a type of filler agent, but is made of poly L lactic acid. This type of filler causes inflammation of the tissues and increases collagen growth. Sculptra is an excellent large volume filler and is used for hollows of the temples, and for overall facial volume. It normally lasts about 2 years.
Neuromodulator agents are agents such as Botox, Dysport, and Xeomin. These medications stop muscles from moving. By stopping muscle motion, they soften wrinkles in the skin overlying the muscle. Common target areas for injection include:
- Glabella – the area between the eyebrows. Injection here stops the vertical “elevens” wrinkles and horizontal rhytids (wrinkles)
- Crows feet – the area on the outside of the eyelids. Injection here softens the horizontal lines caused by smiling
- Forehead. Injection can stop the horizontal expression lines of the forehead
- Combination injections can be used to elevate the lateral brow by 1.5-2 mm
Stem Cell Facelift
A Stem Cell Facelift uses stem cells from your own fat cells. Fat cells in your body offer a rich source of stem cells. Stem cells are cells that are “mother cells” and have not differentiated yet. So, stem cells can develop into new skin cells, or new tissue cells. Stem cells are an important part of the repair and regeneration of soft tissues.
In a stem cell facelift, liposuction is performed either from the abdomen, flanks, or thighs. Fat cells in this area have a high concentration of stem cells. The harvested fat is micronized and injected into the face. The fat that is injected into the face is composed of micro fat. The micro fat increases the volume similar to dermal filler. This technique is called Autologous fat transfer.
The injected fat has several advantages of dermal fillers including:
- You can use more fat. The average fat transfer patient uses >20 cc of fat. Twenty cc’s of filler would be cost prohibitive.
- Fat is more natural and gives a softer result.
- Fat is permanent.
- Fat causes no tissue reaction.
The other fraction in the micronized fat is nano-fat. Dr. Tonnard and Dr. Verpaele showed in their ground breaking research, that the technique we use to micronize fat has high concentrations of stem cells. These stem cells can be injected into tissue planes to increase collagen production, and repair much of the damage caused by aging.
The Stem Cell Facelift combines volume correction with fat along with a resurfacing procedure to enhance the quality of the skin. Options for resurfacing include:
- A TCA chemical peel. TCA is applied to the face to increase collagen, and increase skin thickness.
- Fraxel CO2 laser resurfacing. A fractionated CO2 laser is used to perform a mild laser peel to resurface the skin, increase skin remodeling, enhance skin texture
- The nanofat stem cell mixture can be microneedled into the skin to improve collagen remodeling and production within the skin
Advantages and Disadvantages of a Nonsurgical Facelift
A nonsurgical facelift is not for every patient. The best patients for this procedure are patients with mild volume loss, overall very mild loss of skin tightness, with textural irregularities of skin such as fine lines. Essentially, the best patients are those who are at the beginning stages of the aging process. These patients will experience a much lower recovery time than a standard surgical facelift procedure. Most nonsurgical facelift patients can return to normal within 5-6 days, and sometimes sooner.
Patient selection is critical in achieving dramatic results. Patients who have significant laxity will be better served with an actual lifting procedure. This is why consultation with a board certified surgeon is important. Dr. Athre is experienced with the whole spectrum of facial rejuvenation from nonsurgical facelifts to the most complicated deep plane 3D facelift. This allows him to tailor a rejuvenation procedure to your needs and your anatomy to achieve your dream result.
Anesthesia for a Nonsurgical Facelift
Most nonsurgical facelifts are performed under local anesthesia or topical anesthesia.
Client Testimonial
“Very pleased with another visit to Dr. Athre. It was time to take 5 years off and he did it again in 10 minutes. Dr. Athre injects patients himself, rather than using a nurse aesthetician and I believe it makes all the difference in the world. Quick, painless and I was in and out in less than 30 minutes. He takes a conservative approach which results in a natural appearance. I’m not puffy nor over-filled, just subtly more youthful.”
Schedule a Consultation
Telephone No.281-557-3223