Indeed a cheek augmentation is performed through the mouth with a small incision placed in the area above the teeth. This has a recovery of three-five days and is meant to address patients who have ‘weak cheek’ projection and ‘weak bone structure’. There are no incisions on the outside of the face so this would be considered a minimally invasive procedure.

It is possible to have a slight bump added to your nose to give it some character. However, in most situations patients actually have a slight bump removed leaving them with a strong non-operated-looking profile. The typical patient that we add is someone who has had previous surgery where just a little too much has been done to reduce the profile leaving them with what we refer to as a ‘saddle-type’ deformity. Either cartilage from the nose (septal cartilage) cartilage from the ears (conchal cartilage) or cartilage from the rib (autologous costal cartilage) are usually ideal choices to rebuild the nose. There are other various possibilities if the above is not available to rebuild back a slight bump to the nose. Naturally, this would be done in a way that leaves the patient looking natural with the nose somewhat fitting their face.

For patients with large and drooping earlobes, this is unfortunately an unpleasant part of getting older. No one quite understands why the earlobes become larger, but this is not unusual. An otoplasty typically refers to setting the ears back. This is performed on younger individuals; however, a conservative earlobe reduction is a procedure that does make the earlobe smaller and can be performed in conjunction with a facelift. This can be determined in a necessary consultation.

A patient who is 39 is definitely on the younger side for a facelift; however, depending on someone’s anatomy it may be the most ideal procedure. Health and aging is a relative process and depending on sun exposure, genetics and environmental issues, some patients age more quickly than others. Additionally, there are certain areas of the face on individuals that age faster than others. For example, some patients have aging on the mid-face and upper face at an earlier age and would benefit more from addressing that region. Others patients can age faster in the lower part of the face and in these particular patients a lower lift is more desirable. With regard to cigarette smoking, it is not a contraindication for facelift surgery in a smoker; however, I am always careful to inform them that they are at somewhat higher risk for scarring. In our patients, we like them to quit smoking for one-two weeks prior to the procedure and ideally not resume smoking post-operatively. Many patients use this surgical procedure as a crutch to quit smoking and we found this to be effective as well. Typically, the recovery period is seven-ten days in most patients, meaning that they should be able to go out comfortably with a little bit of make-up on after seven-ten days but not quite ready for a ‘family portrait’ at day 11. If someone takes good care of their skin by wearing a hat and stops cigarette smoking, they should achieve results for at least 8-12 years.