A neck lift is a procedure designed for patients not quite ready for a formal facelift or who’s primary area of concern is sagging neck skin. There are several approaches depending on the extent of redundant skin and muscle, patient age and sex. On occasion mild neck laxity can be addressed with Facetite®, a minimally invasive radiofrequency procedure with needle sized incisions and minimal downtime. When the need for correction is more involved, liposuction and tightening the platysma (the muscle that produces bands and redundancy in the front of the neck) can be done through a small incision in the neck for mild to moderate laxity. While a more extensive posterior neck lift can address more significant skin redundancy but with additional downtime. Lastly, men who have hair bearing neck skin can have a direct neck lift to address a “turkey gobbler” deformity.
Conservative neck lifts can sometimes be under local anesthesia, but most procedures require general anesthesia. Downtime ranges from 1-3 weeks depending on the extent of the procedure. Dr. Wolpoe has a great deal of experience with all of these procedures and can help you pick the operation that is right for you.