Women and men have anatomical differences in their face, which alters the procedure of a facelift when done for men. Historically, facelifts have been mainly a procedure done for women who wanted to rejuvenate their wrinkled face and recapture their youthful appearance. Now that more men are visiting the surgeon’s office to correct wrinkles and sagging in their faces, plastic surgeons are faced with a challenge to adapt the classic facelift procedure to meet the special needs of the male face. Board certified plastic surgeons who are experts in male procedures, like Kole Plastic Surgery in Bucks County, PA, have taken the differences in the male face into consideration and have developed a facelift procedure that is tailored to male facial anatomy to yield the best results.
Skin Thickness
The biggest difference between the male and female face in regards to a facelift is the thickness of skin. Men have thicker skin than women on their face, and their skin is more prone to bleeding. Additionally, the presence of tough facial hair, especially beards, makes the classic facelift a poor option for men, since the pulling and stretching of facial skin will misplace the beard line. This can actually bring the facial hair right up to the ears, making it a tell tale sign of surgery as well as difficult to shave. In order to correct for this problem, incision placements have been modified for men to both hide scars well and solve the problem of facial hair.
Incisions by the ear
The first consideration in incision placement for male facelift surgery is where to place the incision near the ear. For men, it is not optimal to place incisions in front of the ear because it interferes with sideburn hair and would require the removal of sideburns, which would leave a man with a strange pattern of sideburn hair that would signal some plastic surgery has been done. Additionally, incisions in front of the ear would bring the beard hair right up to the ear crease onto the tragus, or the small piece of cartilage on the front of the ear, again creating an abnormal facial hair pattern. Not only would that look unusual, it would also create trouble for men who would then need to shave very closely to the ear or even onto the ear, risking bleeding and cutting more frequently.
Male Facelift Solutions
To correct for this problem, incisions can be made closer to the tragus so beard hair is not pulled so tightly towards the ear. Also, a larger cuff of skin is often left around the ear, so that when the sutures are healed and facial hair begins to grow back, there is a strip of skin near the ear that does not grow facial hair, which looks like the natural placement of the beard, as opposed to the beard growing right up to the ear.
If beard or other facial hair is displaced during facelift surgery, there is a solution to the problem. Men can return to get electrolysis, which is the electrical zapping or destruction of hair follicles that prevents hair from continuing to grow. By getting electrolysis on small areas near the ears or hairline where rogue hair is growing, men can recreate a contoured and natural hairline. Another option that be taken advantage of during surgery is asking your surgeon to destroy the follicles of beard hair where necessary with needle-tip cautery, which will also prevent hair growth in areas where it may appear strange after a facelift.
Each man has their own pattern of facial hair, so it is important to find a surgeon who understands the principles behind male facelift surgery and hair growth so they can perform a procedure that you will be satisfied with. Dr. Kole understands how important it is to maintain your natural appearance after a facelift, and takes special care to make incisions in places that will not displace hair or create unnatural hairlines.
The next step
To find out more about how your facelift surgery might be performed to create a natural yet rejuvenated appearance, contact The Kole Plastic Surgery Center to schedule a private complimentary consultation with Dr. Kole. Call 215-315-7655 today to begin the process towards a younger-looking you!
