What Is the Best Age for a Facelift?
Once you’re an adult, typically there are no hard and fast rules about when you can get a facelift. However, the best time to get a facelift usually narrows the age window. Many patients choose to consider this procedure when they are in their 50s, but every person has unique circumstances, rates of aging, and goals for their appearance. Dr. Mark Richards, our board certified plastic surgeon, commonly performs this operation for patients in their 40s, 50s, and 60s—but individual circumstances vary, and patients in their 30s as well as their 70s and 80s have happily undergone successful facelifts. Oftentimes younger patients can have shorter procedures such as a cheek lift. In general there are three factors that help to determine the ideal timing of facelift surgery:
- Overall health
- Extent of skin laxity, fat loss or gain, neck muscle banding, and changes in facial bone structure
- Personal choice about changes in facial appearance
Facelift surgery is designed primarily to address skin, fat, and muscle laxity, which often causes the facial skin to “fall” and form jowls, neck bands, and sag. Other common signs of aging, such as wrinkles and volume loss, will typically be treated with other techniques in combination with a facelift, or separately. If you’re bothered by the appearance of facial aging, Dr. Richards can customize an approach that optimizes your outcome. During the initial consultation, you can discuss your concerns and learn more about the treatment options that can help you achieve your desired result—regardless of chronologic age.