The classical full face lifting techniques often require longer cuts and are complex surgical procedures to uplift onto the deep plane of the whole face, including the upper area of the face such as forehead and brow.
Short scar facelift (with other “names” given to it such as S lift and MACS: Minimal Access Cranial Suspension) is categorized under a mid face lift. It is a resulted of an improved operation aimed at conserving the overall effective full facelift results with the smallest possible scars for younger patients – typically a woman in her early to late forties as the first signs of aging show in the mid part of the face.
The most important issue for patients to understand is the extensive aging of their skin and surgical procedure fits. For instance, patients aged more than 55 years should seek the classical full face lifting techniques that require action onto the deep plane of whole face, including the upper area of the face. They should not just go for the names, since many “names” can be given to promote surgeons’ profiles and mostly done for marketing purposes.
Operation:
The short scar is carried out under general anaesthetic although occasionally it can be done under a local anaesthetic and sedation. Starting at a top of the ear (hidden by the hair line at this point) the incision travels down the curves in front of the ear rounding the earlobe and up behind the ear for about 1 centimetre. Because the short scar incisions shape somewhat like an s-shape, the facelift procedure sometimes is called S-lift. Through these incisions, surgeons can access skin and deeper tissues to pull and re-drape the skin and re-model the facial shape to correct droopy nasolabial folds and sagging angular jowl. At the end, the incisions are enclosed with stitches in front of the ear.
Important note here is to ask your surgeons about the incision and the re-draping the skin and re-modelling facelift plan. In traditional face lifting, an oblique vector is used for redraping the skin, which can be decomposed into a vertical and oblique component. Because of the shorter incisions in short scar procedure, the horizontal component of the lifting should be avoided as much as possible. Otherwise a lateral redraping of the skin will produce tension and flattening of the face, and a dog ear will be created below the earlobe.
Risk:
* Unsightly scars from unskilful incisions and stitches.
* Thickening and reddening of scars from patients’ heredity and healing ability.
* Haematoma, a collection of blood under the skin that can lead to infections, complications to nerve systems, and delayed wound healing.
* Damages to the nerves, which control the facial muscles is an extremely rare event that can cause a partial paralysis and an unsymmetrical face.
