Before a consultation with your plastic surgeon about Facelift surgery:

• Share your health information with your plastic surgeon, remember to mention if you have allergies, any current illness, pre-existent health conditions, health risk factors, previous surgeries, use of medications, vitamins or supplements and any other relevant medical information
• Your surgeon will ask you questions about what you would like to improve on your face, what your expectations are and will inform you of what can realistically be achieved.
• You will be physically examined, taking into account factors such as bone structure and skin quality.
• Photos at different angles will be taken in order to carry out a complete evaluation
• Pre-surgery blood tests will be ordered
• You’ll need to quit smoking completely
• Make sure to follow the pre-op recommendations your surgeon gives you
• Avoid taking aspirin, anti-inflammatory drugs, garlic and herbal supplements as they can increase bleeding.
• Ask your surgeon if you can take arnica tea one or two weeks before the procedure, this will help to dim the swelling and bruising

For patients over 40 years old or with any added cardiac, respiratory, renal pathology, etc. The following will be requested:

• Cardiological assessment
• Chest X-ray
• Electrocardiogram

 1 MONTH BEFORE SURGERY

• Stop smoking 1 month before your scheduled procedure
• Stop taking alcohol 1 week before the procedure
• GLP-1 USERS: will be required to stop the medication 2 weeks before the procedure to avoid any anesthesia complications
• Avoid using aspirin, fish oil, garlic and omegas, at least 3 weeks before the procedure *if you are medically required to do so, it is very important you let your medical coordinator know about this
• No exercise 3 days before the surgery
• Avoid eating very greasy food 2 days before your surgery
• No skin tanning 2 weeks before the procedure to avoid skin damage
• Plan for your stay in Cancun for surgery and recovery
• Make sure you have a lose button down shirt to use during the recovery period

The Procedure: What to Expect

Anesthesia

A deep plane facelift in Cancun is typically performed under general anesthesia, depending on the surgical plan and whether additional procedures are performed.

The surgery is performed at the Hospital with a one night stay there.

Incisions

Facelift incisions are carefully placed around natural facial contours to minimize visibility.

Typical incision locations include:

• Along the hairline
• Around the ears
• Behind the ears
• Sometimes extending slightly into the scalp

If eyelid surgery is combined:

• Upper eyelid incisions are hidden within the natural eyelid crease
• Lower eyelid incisions are placed just below the lash line or inside the eyelid (transconjunctival approach)

Bandages around the face are applied usually with cold dressings in order to help minimize the swelling.

Deep Plane Technique

During surgery, the deeper facial tissues are carefully released and repositioned upward to restore youthful facial structure without creating an overly pulled appearance.

Excess skin is conservatively redraped and trimmed while preserving natural facial contours and movement.

If neck rejuvenation is needed, the neck muscles and deeper tissues may also be tightened to improve jawline and neck definition.

Stitches and Drains

Incisions are closed using fine sutures designed to support precise healing and minimize scarring.

In some cases, small surgical drains may be placed temporarily to:

• Reduce fluid accumulation
• Minimize swelling
• Lower the risk of hematoma

Drains are typically removed within 1–2 days after surgery.

Right After Surgery

After the surgery is done and you have woken up from the anesthesia, you will have dressings over your face and sometimes over the eyes in case you also had a blepharoplasty. You may also expect in some cases to have small drainage tubes.

Facelift surgery requires a one night stay at the hospital in order to make sure you are healing correctly.

Before You Leave the Hospital

Day after surgery, your plastic surgeon will come to assess your health condition and give you proper care instructions to take back home. It’s normal that you will be prescribed painkillers, anti-inflamatories and antibiotics during the healing process. Your surgeon will give you a check up appointment during the following days to remove your stitches.

During the after care of a facelift surgery, your plastic surgeon will prescribe painkillers, anti-inflammatories, antibiotics and in some cases blood thinners.

He will also indicate the following care:

• You must take your medications as indicated on your post-operative papers that you will receive before you leave for discharge.
• First follow-up post-surgical appointment between the 3rd and 5th day
• Stitches will be removed on day 7 and 15th after surgery, depending on the surgeon’s evaluation
• Wear the bandages for 3 to 5 days
• Relative rest 15 days
• No sexual activity for 6 to 8 weeks
• You should not exercise in the following 6 weeks
• You will be able to shower after your first office check-up with your doctor
• No swimming or soaking in baths, jacuzzi, saunas for 4 weeks.
• You should not sunbathe for the next 4 weeks
• You shouldn’t be touching your wounds
• You will be sleeping on your back in a semi-sitting position for the next 10 days
• You should not smoke

It is important that you follow your surgeon’s recommendations to get a good result.

It is important that you understand that during the recovery after facelift surgery you will experience swelling and bruising, this will subside with time and proper medication given to you by your surgeon.

It is suggested to sleep with pillows on your back to be in a semi-sitting position to avoid pressure on the face, a neck pillow will come in handy to keep your head in a good position for rest. When you are clear to take full showers you can let the water run over the eyelids and use mild soaps to clean your face, be very gentle.

Avoid the use of creams or makeup in the surgical area at least for 2 weeks.

Even though you may feel good and without any pain, you should avoid exercise for at least 4 weeks to allow the area to heal properly. Use normal eye glasses instead of your contact lens for at least 2 weeks.

It is normal that you will feel numbness in the face, so you should be careful when drying your hair with a hot hair dryer. Some patients recover sensation in 6 months.

It is recommended that you stay approximately 17 days at the destination, in order to have proper after care and medical check ups with your surgeon.

The results are immediate, however to see the final result you will have to wait an average of 3 to 6 months for the inflammation and bruising to subside, and for the internal scars to soften.

Risks of a facelift surgery are low when a good surgical preparation is done, complications rarely occur during a facelift surgery, but can include:

• Anesthesia complications
• Bleeding
• Infection
• Facial nerve injury
• Numbness
• Pain
• Unfavorable scarring
• Swelling
• Skin irregularities
• DVT

In order to decrease the risks your surgeon will ask for a series of blood tests and a cardiological evaluation to ensure you are in good health for your procedure.

Following your surgeon’s recommendations will favor a good outcome.