Facelift: Info, Prices, Photos, Reviews, Q&A

There are a few things you can do. Taking Arnica and Bromelain may help. Also wearing a chin/neck bandage can help reduce swelling. (Ryan Neinstein, MD, FRCSC, New York Plastic Surgeon)

Most of the things that reduce swelling are going to be common sense things.

They include rest, keeping your head elevated (45 degrees up), not raising your blood pressure, keeping calm and relaxed, ice packs or ice water soaks, a compressive velcro chin strap.

Limiting salt and wheat in your diet can help. If your swelling is severe, your surgeon can prescribe a short 5 day course of steroid pills by prescription. (Kouros Azar, MD, Thousand Oaks Plastic Surgeon)

Swelling and lumps after a lower facelift are usually with in normal limits and are part of the course of healing. Best to check with your original surgeon to see how they handle these issues.

Bromelain and Arnica will probably not help 9 weeks after the surgery. Ultrasound, steroid shots and a low-salt diet will all help with these issues. Most of these irregularities should resolve over time in the next few months. (William Portuese, MD, Seattle Facial Plastic Surgeon)

The best approach is to allow the passage of time. Time alone will allow your scarring to heal, your tissues to mature, your swelling to come down, and your contours to smooth out. In some situations, gentle lymphatic massage can assist. Discuss this with your surgeon. (Lara Devgan, MD, MPH, New York Plastic Surgeon)

Reduce face and neck swelling after face lift

The swelling comes from fluid and healing protein, A support bandage will help – as it will for a swollen ankle, My face lift patients like my idea of a 3-4 inch ace bandage, wrapped like an ear bandage under the chin to top of the head, worn at home, day and night if possible for up to 6 weeks after the face lift. (Elizabeth Morgan, MD, PhD, Atlanta Plastic Surgeon)

Rapid recovery

Keeping your head elevated, and limiting activity are key components of decreasing swelling. I personally also leave a drain in for two to three days, and that has done more to reduce early swelling than anything else. (Patti A. Flint, MD, Scottsdale Plastic Surgeon)

Decrease bruising and swelling

In addition to resting and maintaining the head elevated, we recommend bromolene and arnica for our facelift patients. (Marcelo Ghersi, MD, Miami Plastic Surgeon)

Swelling after a facelift

Sometimes swelling just has to run its course. Elevation, low sodium diet, ice as well as limited massage are the best treatment for swelling. (Jeffrey Zwiren, MD, Atlanta Plastic Surgeon)

Keep head elevated, low salt diet and time. (Donald Nunn, MD, Atlanta Plastic Surgeon)

Healing up fast

Some of the answers from other physicians give great information. Certainly a support bandage (ace bandage) would help. Also arnica and bromelain help reduce bruising and swelling. Another options is a ultrasound facial, which stimulates the healing.

Finally, time is your best friend. (Sandy Sule, MD, Dallas Facial Plastic Surgeon)

Swelling After Facelift

There are many things you can do to help reduce the swelling after your facelift. Sleep elevated with a bed wedge. Stay up during the day. Take short walks, and drink lots of fluid. The most important thing is to follow your Plastic Surgeon’s post op instructions for your best result. (Robert E. Zaworski, MD, Atlanta Plastic Surgeon)

If you already have surgery and your face is still swollen and with lumps after surgery. What I had found to reduce this condition in the ultraund massage in the face. (Alejandro J. Quiroz, MD, FACS, Mexico Plastic Surgeon)

Massage is a tool that is most useful in this context. your sensation will come back over a period of months. (Ethan Philpott, MD, Scottsdale Plastic Surgeon)

Everyone gets some amount of numbness and that is considered normal. The numbness dissipates over 6 weeks at the earliest though I’ve seen it take as long as 12 months to completely subside. Very rarely is this ever a permanent concern.

Lumps and bumps after facelift are normal. They start 2-3 weeks after the surgery and are usually located in front of the ear or just below the angle of the jaw or under the chin.

They can get bigger for 6-8 weeks but they start to dissipate around the time and usually by 12 weeks are much better. The lumps can usually be felt but rarely are seen. (Mike Majmundar, MD, Atlanta Facial Plastic Surgeon)

Be sure to see your surgeon for advice. In my experience minor swelling and lumps after Lower Facelift and Platysmaplasty can respond to warm soaks and massage. Ultrasound can also help. It is important to be examined by your surgeon to make certain that there is not a collection of blood or hematoma.

Minor swelling and lumps should resolve with time.(Brooke R. Seckel, MD, FACS, Boston Plastic Surgeon)

At just over two months post-op lower facelift and platysmaplasty, numbness is entirely expected and should gradually return to a new “normal” over several months, and reach maximum improvement at about one year. Scars also take 6-8 months (or longer) to completely soften, settle, and fade maximally, but you must avoid ultraviolet exposure (sun AND tanning beds of any kind) until your scars have lost all pinkness in order to prevent unwanted hyperpigmentation.

Swelling and lumpiness is variable with each patient, and is worse if there was some under-the-skin bruising or oozing in the early post-op period. This can occur with vomiting, increased activity, or elevated blood pressure from any cause.

Whatever swelling has turned into subcutaneous scar tissue can be reduced by external massage therapy, external ultrasound treatments, and perhaps gentle infrared treatments, (all performed in our office by our massage therapist, and included in the cost of our facelift procedures).

You can do this on your own, but don’t think you can reverse this overnight–a regular routine of massage and continued head elevation above heart level will help this resolve soonest. Scarring or excessive lumpiness that persists can be further reduced by judicious steroid injections by your surgeon.

At this point in time, Arnica and Bromelain are no longer helpful (though I use Arnica in my patients immediately post-op, and feel that it is a benefit in reducing bruising and aiding re-absorption). Be patient, you still have a way to go to see your final results. (Richard H. Tholen, MD, FACS, Minneapolis Plastic Surgeon)

Reduction of swelling and lumps after lower facelift and platysmaplasty

You are still very much in the recovery period post lower facelift and platysmaplasty and I would suggest that everything you are experiencing is entirely normal. I would expect a gradual improvement over the next 3-6 months providing that you massage and moisturise the areas, its imperative for nerve recovery that you touch the areas and massaging will help this greatly.

Arnica creams are good and cool packs are beneficial so it sounds like you are doing all the right things! Make sure you use high protection suncreams when out in the sun to avoid the scars burning. (Amir Nakhdjevani, MBBS, MRCS, FRCS (Plast), London Plastic Surgeon)