In this day and age, we have a “gotta have it yesterday” mentality.  Information is sent around the world in microseconds, packages are shipped overnight, and we can even microwave dinner in three minutes.  We’re always on the go, multitasking, working even more than before. We are taking the kids from school to soccer practice, music lessons, and home for dinner, and then we have our regular tennis leagues.

I see many patients who are concerned about facial aging.  They look older than they feel and want to stay youthful and, in many instances, competitive.  They often look for quick fixes.  When I was a plastic surgery resident 25 years ago, the only treatment methods for the aging face were a facelift surgery, forehead lift, and blepharoplasty eyelid surgery .  Patients were either a candidate or not.  Since that time, our understanding of facial aging has increased dramatically.  We now understand that over one’s lifetime, you can lose as much as 50% of your facial fat.  In addition, the skin becomes lax and the cells are unable to retain water.  This all contributes to the face sagging, with the development of jowls, loose neck skin, prominent nasolabial folds, bags under the eyes, and drooping eyebrows.
Physicians are now not only resecting the loose skin, but also adding volume to the face, with different types of fillers including fat, hyaluronic acid, and collagen.  In addition, the face lifting procedures have expanded in techniques, to include limited dissection facelifts, thread lifts, and multi-plane facelifts.  This not only gives the patient many alternatives but also contributes to confusion as to what is the best choice.