Team Costhetics is young at heart, but a number of our female members are ‘women of a certain age.’
At our weekly roundtable sharing the latest news and information about cosmetic surgery and enhancement, they led a discussion of why so many women in their 50’s is opting for surgery in a world seemingly gone wild for anti-ageing injectables.
7 Tell-Tale Sign of an Ageing Face
Skin ageing doesn’t really happen overnight, though it often seems that way. Somehow, when you aren’t paying attention, your once firm, glowing facial skin has been slowing changing. Women in their 50’s suddenly find themselves plagued by:
- Skin laxity
- Epidermis thins
- Subcutaneous fat layer thins
- Melanocyte production decreases
- Changes in connective tissue undercut skin’s elasticity and strength
- Blood vessels become more fragile and easily bruised
- Oil production slows with the onset of menopause
Are dermal fillers the answer? If you’re over 50…maybe not, or maybe in conjunction with surgical procedures too.
Why Patients Over 50 Choose a Facelift
Fillers can help address modest skin laxity by replacing lost volume. For older faces, though, injectables simply don’t have the power needed to correct deeply etched lines, folds, and other visible signs of facial ageing
Happily, the goals of facial surgery are right in sync with the goals of patients over 50:
- Eliminate excess skin
- Lift and smooth sagging skin
- Restore skin to a more youthful position
- Eliminate jowls
- Rejuvenate the face
- Create a natural, more youthful and refreshed appearance
There are a variety of surgical alternatives to choose among. Let’s take a look at the top three.
Deep Plane Facelift When You’re Over 50
Different surgeons employ different techniques when performing a facelift, but the acknowledged gold standard is the deep plane facelift. Complex and demanding, and widely praised for the natural looking results it provides, this procedure is performed by few facial plastic surgeons in the field.
Among its merits:
- Repositions deep facial soft tissue that lies beneath the SMAS layer
- Enables the entire face to be lifted
- Accentuates key facial features including cheekbones, neck, and jaw
- Provides natural-looking results
- Offers results that may last up to 15 years
As good as a deep plane facelift may be, it can be even more beneficial when combined with other facial surgeries, as well as non-surgical treatments.
Blepharoplasty for Youthful Eyes
Eyelid surgery can help you banish the droopy eyelids and puffy under-eye bags that give your face an old, tired appearance. It can also:
- Remove dark under-eye circles
- Enhance the eye shape for a more youthful appearance
- Reduce under-eye bags
- Correct crepe-like fine wrinkles on the lower lid
- Raise drooping lower eyelids
The benefits of blepharoplasty are not merely cosmetic. Many people have eyelid surgery to relieve:
- Skin irritation from excess folds rubbing together
- Improved line of sight
- Expanded vision
Brow Lift
One of the hallmarks of youth is a smooth, unlined brow. By the time we reach 50, a lifetime of facial expressions has left us with static wrinkles and droopy, misshapen eyebrows and often a tired, angry expression that never goes away. A brow lift is a facial surgery that targets the tissues in your forehead that create lines and wrinkles. Brow lifts are prized for creating a face that looks refreshed, not ‘done.’ The procedure itself is minimally invasive and requires only modest downtime.
Many patients appreciate that a brow lift can:
- Lift sagging upper eyelids
- Reduce the appearance of crow’s feet
- Erase frown lines and nose furrows
- Create a more pleasing eyebrow arch
- Remove excess skin that creates wrinkles or hangs over eyes
50 and Fabulous
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare estimates the average citizen will live until nearly 83. With the right treatments and a well-chosen surgery or two, today’s 50-somethings will still be looking terrific in 2050. Costhetics thinks that’s great. (We think you’re great, too.)