Question: I’m just 32 but I’m considering a facelift or maybe a midface lift as an alternative to cheek implants to get the look of higher cheekbones. Would this work?

Answer: A midface lift certainly will give you the illusion of higher cheekbones since we are lifting soft tissue of the cheek.  I would like to examine you to determine whether you are a really good candidate for a midface lift or if you would be better served by malar implants since if you have a very small amount of soft tissue, you would be a much better candidate for the implants than the lift.  Overall, I am a big fan of cheek implants since they are relatively easy to perform, recover from, and they are very consistent in their results as well as the fact that they are permanent in nature.

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Question: If I have injectable fillers in my midface and cheek area, how long should I wait before I can safely have a midface lift?

Answer: You really do not have to wait to have a midface lift after having fillers placed in your midface, but obviously if you have gotten a nice result from your fillers, you might want to enjoy them and then get the midface lift once they have resorbed.  If the timing is good for a midface lift surgery and the fillers are unnecessary after the surgery then hopefully you have had hyaluronic acid fillers placed in your midface and your surgeon can simply place a small amount of hyaluronidase in the area a few days before surgery to literally make the filler completely disappear prior to the surgical procedure.  Ultimately, I feel this is a rather individualized and customized approach, and I would just discuss your concerns with your surgeon.

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Question: If I want a procedure that will give me the appearance of having higher cheekbones what would be my best option?

Answer: You have several options to give the appearance of higher cheekbones. The easiest would be simply to place filler high up in the cheek and add volume in this area and this will, therefore, make your cheeks more prominent. A longer lasting possibility would be to place cheek or malar implants so that this volume will last a lifetime. A third option would be a midface lift, which is a surgical procedure that lifts the cheek tissue up into a more aesthetic position, and a final option would be a deep plane facelift where the midface is elevated in conjunction with a very elegant facelift.

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Question: I think I need a midface lift, but I would like to know if it will help with the appearance of nasolabial folds.

Answer: Many years ago there were studies performed analyzing the before and after results of a transtemporal midface lift and this showed that the cheek volume was definitely improved, and this did enhance the overall cheek area, but that it did very little for the nasolabial folds and jowling, and this has been my personal experience as well. The majority of midface lifts that I personally do today are in patients that require facial rejuvenation and are, therefore, part of a deep plane facelift that not only corrects the aging signs of jowling and submental laxity, but can also elevate the cheek complex and give patients an overall refreshed look in a very natural way. This facelift technique also improves the nasolabial folds, so in one single procedure I am not only able to rejuvenate the face, but I am also able to provide midface elevation and improvement in the nasolabial folds.

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Question: Would midface implants enhance my cheekbones giving me a more sculpted face?

Answer: For patients with flat cheeks or lack of cheek prominence, cheek implants are an excellent way to give patients cheekbones that will give them a more sculpted appearance. There is a variety of different shapes and sizes and depending on what areas of the face require more volume will depend on what style of implant is used and then depending on the amount of volume that is needed will depend on what size is actually selected. In the operating room we have sizers that we place to assess the area and once we have a size that gives us the ultimate appearance that we desire, the same size implant is then inserted and secured to give the patient a permanent improvement.

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