hread Facelift

A thread facelift is a safe, convenient alternative to traditional facelift surgery. Designed to be less invasive, it can reduce sagging around the cheeks, jawline, and neck more quickly and with less risk than the conventional approach. Special threads are used during this facelift to discreetly hold repositioned skin and facial tissue in place after surgery. In a Contour ThreadLift™, clear threads are used to further minimize any traces of surgery. And while thread lifts generally produce noticeable results almost immediately and with less risk and inconvenience than more intensive procedures, thread lift costs are quite reasonable compared to traditional options.

What Is a Thread Facelift?

A thread facelift is a convenient, less invasive alternative to traditional facelifts, designed for people experiencing early signs of aging, such as minor facial sagging. This innovative facelift procedure can be performed in just one or two hours, often without anesthesia. During a thread facelift, the cosmetic surgeon inserts thin threads into the face through tiny incisions made in the targeted area. These threads attach to the skin tissue and are then pulled back to lift and smooth the face. Almost immediately, treated areas will be raised slightly, eliminating sagging and giving patients a rejuvenated appearance. Because patients usually remain fully conscious during the procedure, they can approve the look of their thread lift while the surgeon works. Once the threads are knotted, they become hidden within the skin itself, and any scarring that results will be virtually invisible.

Contour ThreadLift™

A Contour ThreadLift™ is a type of thread facelift that uses unique Contour Threads™. Made of clear polypropylene, the threads are nonabsorbable and are guided along previously designated contour lines, improving precision. Inserted through small incisions made above the hairline, the barb-covered threads tighten and lift sagging skin for a more youthful-looking appearance.

Candidates for Thread Lift

The best candidates for a thread facelift are in their 30s to 60s and have relatively good skin tone. Most are beginning to experience sagging in their face or neck but do not have excessively loose skin or drooping facial areas that might require more rigorous facelift surgery. If signs of aging are relatively minimal, a thread lift may be a good way to make cosmetic enhancements while avoiding facelift scarring and other potential side effects, which sometimes occur after more intensive surgical procedures

Average Thread Lift Costs

Because it involves little or no anesthesia and less time at the hospital, a thread lift costs much less than conventional facelift surgery. In fact, the typical thread lift costs roughly half the price of a traditional facelift, depending on how many threads are used during the procedure. A qualified cosmetic surgeon will be able to give patients more detailed information regarding prices in specific regions.

Locate a Facial Plastic Surgeon through DocShop

If you’re interested in a thread facelift as an economical alternative to more intensive facelift procedures, the next step is to talk to a qualified cosmetic surgeon. He or she will be able to give you helpful information about various thread lift costs and techniques (such the Contour ThreadLift™). Use DocShop to locate an experienced thread facelift specialist today

Who Should Consider a Thread Lift?

As we age, our facial support structure weakens, and we lose facial fat. The affected areas generally include the cheeks, the eyebrows and other areas around the eyes, the jowls and the neck. The result is a longer, older-looking face.

Younger people may experience cheek and brow ptosis (sagging caused by weakened muscles) as well. For these people especially, a thread lift may be a good alternative to the more invasive procedures necessary to correct problems in older people's faces.

Ideal candidates for thread lifts include people with minimal signs of aging who need just a small lift. Most people who undergo thread lifts are women between 35 and 45. They choose a thread lift because they have begun to see more prominence of the jaw, a relaxed (or minimally sagging) midfacial appearance or slight bags under the eyes or on the neck. Older people may undergo a thread lift during the more aggressive facelift procedure to provide additional support for the soft tissue area that was elevated in the facelift.

Other thread lift candidates include those who have had some relapse from a previous plastic surgery procedure such as a facelift or neck lift. Many physicians combine thread lifts with other procedures, such as chin lifts, neck lifts and brow lifts, for a customized approach to facial rejuvenation.

To be an ideal thread lift candidate, you should understand and accept the possibility of the risks and complications outlined below.

The Thread Lift Procedure

Your surgeon may instruct you not to eat or drink after midnight before the thread lift. He or she may prescribe an antibiotic to take beforehand and tell you to cease taking certain other medications.

During the procedure, your surgeon will make small incisions in key locations and insert a threaded needle to lift the subcutaneous tissue and suspend the lift with the thread. The barbs on these threads will lock in place and encourage collagen formation upon insertion to lift very specific areas.

Several variations of the technique exist. In general, the "closed" technique involves molding the soft tissue over the suture in multiple location points until it catches in the appropriate location to provide the best result. During an "open" technique, the surgeon will use instruments under the skin to create a raw surface so that when the sutures are pulled up, the lift is more likely to remain in the appropriate position.

Other surgeons have developed a combination technique that uses sutures at multiple tissue levels to catch all the barbs and create a suspension that cannot be accomplished with a nonbarbed suture. Depending on your needs, the number of threads used can range from two to 20.

Thread lifts are often performed in an outpatient medical surgery center or hospital. Because the procedure is minimally invasive, general anesthesia is not required, so you can remain awake. One benefit is that the plastic surgeon can give you a mirror as the thread is pulled back, allowing you to give feedback. Usually an oral antianxiety medication, along with local anesthesia, is all that is required. Most people tolerate this well and avoid any "postanesthesia hangover."

Thread Lift Recovery

Your surgeon will provide complete postoperative instructions that you must follow to reduce the risk of complications during recovery. These instructions may include an escort to drive you home and assist with daily activities for at least 24 hours, as well as diet restrictions (soft foods) for seven days. Pain can be managed with oral medications such as acetaminophen. Ibuprofen is avoided to limit bruising. Your surgeon may recommend elevating your head to reduce swelling for the first day.

The day following the procedure, you can resume nonstrenuous activities, and all normal activities can usually be resumed within seven days. You probably won't be comfortable in social situations for up to one week — three weeks for weddings, reunions and other formal occasions.

Risks and Complications

The thread lift is still a relatively new procedure, and its techniques are still being developed. Results have varied greatly among patients, but continue to improve.

A significant risk of the thread lift procedure is that you may not notice any improvement. In this case, you would want to proceed with a traditional brow lift, facelift or neck lift for a noticeable improvement. Some thread lift patients with thin skin have reported that the sutures became visible under the skin shortly after the procedure. On the other hand, plastic surgeons with more experience say this represents poor techniques or patient selection.

You may experience a lack of sensitivity or numbness in the treated area, which usually subsides within weeks of the procedure.

Infection in the treatment area is an infrequent complication. If an infection develops, your surgeon will treat it with antibiotics. Rarely, an infection may require surgical drainage. Scar tissue formation is also possible.

Some surgeons have noted rare migration of the sutures, causing an unbalanced facial appearance. With this, or if the thread may break, a simple reinsertion solves the problem.

Some surgeons are reluctant to perform the thread lift until they can evaluate results after one or two years. If the results look good and are deemed sustainable and safe after that time, they would elect to perform it. Clinical studies on various aspects of the Contour Threadlift are under way at three universities in the United States.

Thread Lift Cost

Thread lifts can cost from $1,500 to $4,500. These costs vary based on the extent of the procedure, areas treated and the expertise of your surgeon. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons reported that in 2006 the national average physician fee for thread lifts was $2,443. The organization no longer tallies information on thread lift costs.

Because thread lifts (like most cosmetic procedures) are elective, most insurance carriers will not cover the cost. Some surgeons offer direct payment plans to their patients. Others work with a financial group that provides loans and other payment plans. Independent financial institutions also provide ways to handle these expenses.