Neck Lift

Neck Lift (Cervicoplasty, Platysmaplasty and Isolated Liposuction)
Turtlenecks are terrific – on turtles!
When to consider a Neck Lift

You may have noticed the skin on your neck has begun to appear less supple and more lined with each passing year. Or perhaps you’ve developed loose folds on your neck as an unwanted side-effect of an otherwise successful diet and fitness program.

Creases, fat or excess skin in your neck and chin become noticeable with weight gain or loss or as muscles and connective tissues begin to relax and your skin becomes less elastic. Whether your sagging neckline has become a problem area from weight loss or the march of time, you’ve probably grown tired of concealing your neck with collars, hooded shirts and scarves.

Robinson Facial Plastic Surgery offers a variety of surgical and non-surgical options for enhancing your neckline and eliminating the need to wear fashionable disguises. Dr. Ernest B. Robinson is a Board Certified Specialist in facial plastic and reconstructive surgery with more than 15 years of experience performing individualized neck lifts for his patients from Orange County and beyond. If you’re considering a neck lift, contact Robinson Facial Plastic Surgery in Aliso Viejo to request a consultation. Call, email or complete this form to schedule an appointment with Dr. Robinson to discuss the treatments available to reach your individual corrective or cosmetic enhancement goals.

Communicating your goals for this procedure
Surgical techniques to achieve your desired outcome
Recuperating after your Neck Lift
Expected results from this procedure

Communicating your goals for this procedure

During your consultation, Dr. Robinson will examine your neck, take a thorough medical history and explore your motivation for considering a surgical neck lift. He may recommend a combination of procedures to achieve your desired outcome, whether it’s to eliminate unwanted band lines or remove excess skin and fatty tissue.
He’ll describe each procedure in detail, discuss anticipated results and surgical limitations, and answer any questions you may have. As with any restorative plastic surgery, the success of your neck lift will depend greatly on communicating your expectations of the surgical outcome.
Many of Dr. Robinson’s patients combine neck lifts with other rejuvenation procedures, such as a facelift, forehead lift or eyelift surgery. He also may suggest non-surgical treatments that will reduce wrinkles or improve your skin’s tone and texture, to further enhance your results.

Surgical techniques to achieve your desired outcome

Dr. Robinson performs neck lifts at Pacific Hills Surgery Center. If he will be removing excess fat deposits in your neck and chin, he’ll use local anesthesia and perform isolated liposuction, a procedure that can be done alone or in conjunction with neck lift surgery. During isolated liposuction, the doctor will make an incision below your chin and use a small hollow tube, or cannula, to break up and remove fatty tissue. If this is the only treatment you’re having, Dr. Robinson will close the incision and apply a bandage to your chin; to reduce swelling, he also may bandage your head and neck.

If you’re also having your neck surgically lifted, you will be given general anesthesia. Dr. Robinson will begin by making well-camouflaged incisions under your chin and behind your ears. He will perform a procedure called cervicoplasty to remove excess skin. This involves carefully lifting the skin, trimming away the excess, and then securing it in place with permanent sutures. If your goal is to eliminate deep neck creases or band lines, Dr. Robinson will perform a platysmaplasty, which tightens your muscles by repositioning them or reducing their size.

Once the doctor has removed fatty tissue, trimmed excess skin or tightened your neck muscles, he will re-drape your skin and close the incisions with stitches. The entire process takes from two to four hours, depending on the extent of your surgery and if you’re having other procedures performed at the same time.

Recuperating after your Neck Lift

You will wear compression bandages for about a week after surgery to protect the stitches and minimize bruising and swelling while you heal. A thin tube may be inserted to drain excess fluid that could accumulate under your skin.

You’ll be discharged a few hours after this relatively painless procedure with a prescription for medication to treat mild discomfort and instructions to elevate your head and apply cold compresses to minimize post-surgical swelling and bruising. It’s important to have someone at home to assist in your care for the first few days; if you’re away from home our staff can help you arrange for after care.

If a drainage tube was used during surgery, Dr. Robinson will remove it after a day or two and remove your stitches within about a week. You should experience little pain during your recovery period, usually about 10 days to two weeks, after which you’ll be cleared to return to work and resume your normal social activities.

Expected results from this procedure

You will see a remarkable difference in your thinner, more contoured neckline about a week after your surgery, when the bandages have been removed and the majority of swelling and bruising has subsided. The incisions, concealed in the natural creases under your chin and behind your ears, will fade in a few months with proper care and diligent use of sunscreen, though it may take another month or so for residual swelling to disappear completely.

Your neck lift not only will rejuvenate your overall appearance, it may even fool some friends and co-workers into thinking you’ve recently lost weight. Don’t be surprised if you’re asked for dieting tips!