People often don’t think about their neck until it’s too late. By the time they finally think about their neck, it is due to its sagging. However, you don’t need to spend the rest of your life hiding your sagging neck skin by wearing long hair during cold months and short-sleeved turtle necks during warm months. At Kadz Plastic Surgery in Beverly Hills, CA, we offer a neck lift to restore a youthful profile you can be confident in.
How Long Does a Neck Lift Last?
The toning, tightening results of a neck lift are semi-permanent. However, nothing can reverse or delay the aging process for good. You should expect to need a maintenance procedure 10 to 15 years after your initial procedure to keep the youthful profile you desire. However, you can extend the longevity of your results by making healthy choices in your lifestyle. Also, a sound skincare routine will help your results last longer.
How to Make Your Results Last Longer
While anti-aging creams and serums are insufficient for lifting sagging neck skin, they can improve the health of your skin and help your neck lift results last as long as possible. For the longest-lasting results, invest in skincare products containing collagen and hyaluronic acid. This will help your skin stay nourished and hydrated.
Remember to Mind Your Posture
Another effective way to extend your results is to mind your posture. The more you bend your neck and lean forward, the more your skin is creased. After years of creasing for hours at a time, the neck skin wrinkles and develops deep bands. To prevent neck strain, it is advisable to hold your phone at eye level. You should also be aware of how you hold and move your neck when you work, drive, read, and play video games.
At first, you will forget about your posture every once in a while. However, over time, you will be constantly aware of your posture. After enough time, proper posture will come naturally, and you will no longer need to think about it.
Make Healthy Choices
Making healthy lifestyle choices will extend the longevity of your results significantly. For example, you should follow CDC and AHA guidelines regarding drinking alcohol in moderation. You should also eat nutritious foods most of the time and limit the amount of sugar and salt you consume. Also, if you want your neck skin to remain tight and smooth for as long as possible, you must refrain from consuming tobacco products, such as:
- Cigars
- Chewing tobacco
- Electronic cigarettes
- Cigarettes
Nicotine destroys your existing collagen, the protein responsible for keeping your skin looking young and healthy and decreases the efficiency with which your skin produces new collagen. Also, it is very important to apply sunscreen to your chest and neck and reapply it every four hours. Like nicotine, UV ray damage wreaks havoc on your collagen. Finally, it is very important to remain hydrated.
What Is a Neck Lift?
A neck lift, sometimes called platysmaplasty or lower rhytidectomy, is a cosmetic procedure designed to restore a youthful profile to the neck. Specifically, lower rhytidectomy is designed to remove excess chin fat and eliminate jowls, enhancing the appearance of the jawline.
It is also designed to enhance the appearance of the neck by removing extra neck muscle causing bands that negatively affect the neck’s contours. Also, loose neck skin is tightened during this procedure.
The Scope of Platysmaplasty
On the other hand, platysmaplasty is simply a neck-enhancing procedure. Unlike lower rhytidectomy, it does not involve excess chin fat removal. What you can expect from this procedure is the elimination of excess neck fat and skin.
Furthermore, loose neck skin is tightened during this procedure. This will boost your self-confidence by helping you look years younger and much thinner. You may even donate your scarves and turtlenecks to people in need because you are so confident in your neck’s appearance.
What Causes Neck Skin Laxity?
Skin laxity is a natural part of the aging process. Any area of the body can experience loose skin but it most commonly affects the jawline and neck. In some cases, young people experience skin laxity in this area due to massive weight loss. Nevertheless, it most often occurs due to a lack of hyaluronic acid, elastin, and collagen.
As you age, your skin starts to metabolize these essential compounds faster than it produces them. This leads to such visible signs of aging as dry, wrinkled, and sagging skin. The neck is among the first places to show these aging signs due to how thin the skin is in the region.
What Causes Excess Neck Fat?
Your genetics is one of the most significant factors determining where your body stores excess energy. Neck fat is particularly frustrating because it is so hard to hide. You can wear summer scarves when it’s warm and turtlenecks in the winter, but you can’t feasibly hide your neck fat every day. On days that your neck is exposed, you look much heavier and older than you truly are.
Neck fat is also particularly frustrating because it is impossible to spot-reduce fat even with targeted exercise. You can operate at a caloric deficit for months or years and only burn a noticeable amount of fat from your thighs, arms, back, or hips. Barring a fat removal procedure, it is possible to have excess neck fat unless you temporarily achieve an unsustainably low body fat percentage.
What to Expect Throughout the Neck Enhancement Process
A Consultation
We need to ensure this procedure is a good fit for you before we schedule it. To determine this, Dr. Bruce Kadz, M.D. will assess your current aesthetic and review your cosmetic goals. He will also discuss your health history and current health with you to ensure you are currently healthy enough to undergo this procedure. Depending on your goals, you may need a couple of procedures to achieve the look you want.
For example, if you have a great deal of extraneous adipose tissue in your neck, liposuction may be required in addition to your neck lift to achieve your desired contours. Also, he will advise you on everything you must do to prepare for your operation. You may be considered a poor candidate for this procedure if you don’t think you can follow all of the rules. As an example, you must be able to go three months without consuming nicotine or alcohol.
Preparation
Remember, to qualify for this procedure, you must be willing and able to abide by all pre-operative rules. For example, you may not consume alcohol or caffeine. Also, you must not take any drugs or supplements that will affect your blood pressure by thinning your blood or through some other means. Additionally, you must go at least eight hours without eating or drinking prior to your procedure if you would prefer general anesthesia.
If you’ve never gone a day without lunch in your life, it is advisable to schedule your procedure early in the morning so all you have to do is stop eating and drinking at midnight. On the other hand, if you firmly believe that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, a late afternoon procedure would be more appropriate for you.
Your Procedure
What to expect during your procedure will be discussed in great detail during your initial consultation once Dr. Kadz has a thorough understanding of your cosmetic goals. However, regardless of the scope of your procedure, you can expect to receive either general anesthesia or sedation and local anesthesia before your procedure begins.
What to Expect Following Your Procedure
There are several rules you must abide by in the weeks following your procedure. During your initial evaluation, we will review these rules in detail. We will also review them after your procedure to give you another opportunity to ask any questions. Here are some of the rules you must abide by after your procedure:
- Don’t take blood-thinners
- Don’t consume tobacco products
- Don’t drink alcohol
- Don’t exercise intensely
- Don’t get your incision sites wet
- Take all prescriptions as directed
Book Your Evaluation Today
Depending on your age, skin health, and lifestyle choices, your neck lift results may last for 10 to 15 years. If you think this procedure could improve your profile and self-confidence, we’re here to help. Book an appointment at Kadz Plastic Surgery in Beverly Hills, CA to learn more.
