surgeon’s assistant, and the hospital, should you have any questions. Please do not hesitate to call at any time. In addition, please call if your pain should continue to get worse or if you should experience a fever [17, 18].

(L)Please do not take alcohol for 1 week after surgery.

(M)Please completely avoid the sun for 3 weeks after surgery as this can increase swelling. After these 3 weeks, please use sun block daily (at least SPF 15) and wear a protective hat. These things are good for your skin in general, as well as to help the healing process after your facelift.

(N)You may have a facial and/or have you hair bleached, tinted, colored, or permed 6 weeks after surgery.

(O)You should expect to return to see the surgeon about 1 week after surgery for a postoperative visit. During this first week, it is usually a good idea to take time off work. At this postoperative visit, as well as inspecting the face and incisions, the surgeon will remove any stitches and skin staples. After this visit, you will also be asked to come see the surgeon after about 6 weeks, to once again check your face and the incisions. If everything is healing well at this point, you may be asked to return for another postoperative visit in several months to 1 year’s time for a long-term follow-up.

(P)You may use makeup 1 week after surgery, though there are specialized, medical makeup preparations which may be used immediately once the dressings are removed.

(Q)If you smoke, please try to avoid smoking for as long as possible, but for at least 2 weeks. The longer you can avoid smoking, the better it is for the healing process [11].

(R)For men, because parts of the face may remain numb for the first few weeks, we recommend using an electric razor for shaving. This reduces the chance for cutting the skin and bleeding while wet-shaving.

(S)The final result of the surgery will be evident from about 6–9 months after the operation. By this time, the scars will have softened and faded.

(T)If you also had eye bag surgery to the upper eyelid, you will have that stitch removed at your 1 week postoperative visit. If you had lower eye

bag surgery, you may or may not have an incision where stitches will be removed. During this first week, you will be using antibiotic eye drops to lessen the sensation that here is something in your eye and to prevent a very small risk of infection. Your eyes may feel watery. You may wear sunglasses during this time, but you should be careful not to injure the facelift incision near the ear. Normal postoperative swelling and bruising to the upper and lower eyelid areas may take several weeks to resolve completely. During this time, it may also feel tight when closing your eyes. After 2 weeks, you may massage the lower eyelid area with a gentle but firm upward movement. Please do not wear contact lenses for 2 weeks following surgery. Though a dramatic result can be appreciated within the first few weeks, the final result will take about 6–9 months [19–21].

(U)If you had liposuction to the neck, you will notice a very small 2 mm-long incision just under the chin. This will heal without stitches. The dressings used for your facelift incorporate the liposuction area of the neck as well. Normal postoperative swelling and bruising will take several weeks to resolve completely. Over the course of several weeks to months, not only has fat been removed at the time of surgery, but the skin of the neck will progressively tighten and marked improvement will continue to occur. You may perform gentle but firm massage in an upward direction, to both sides of the neck, 2 weeks after your operation [1, 19, 22].

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