Instructions for Facelift

It is very important to review our Medications to Avoid page so that there is no increased risk of bleeding during your facelift.

       For patients who have high blood pressure, it is critical to continue your blood pressure medication.  For morning doses, please confirm with Dr. Afifi and the anesthesiologist that you will take the dose AND BRING THIS MEDICATION WITH YOU ON THE MORNING OF SURGERY

After surgery, please rest with head elevated (30 degrees is fine) and with clean pillow cases or a clean towel over your pillow. One option is also to add a “travel pillow”  (as used in airplanes) so that your head is held gently while you are sleeping.

        Incision Care:  Dr. Afifi usually uses very fine and fast absorbing sutures to get the best scar possible.  Bacitracin applied 1 – 2 x a day is optimal for your scar.

        For the first 2 weeks, avoid bending over and turning your head at a fast rate or at extreme angles – you may do this after 4 weeks, but to allow for best healing, we would recommend avoiding aggressive or fast head turning.

        Drains:  to minimize fluid and blood under facelift, small drains are often used after surgery.  These are typically removed on your first postoperative visit one day following surgery.  In rare instances when patients have high blood pressure as history, they may be kept for an additional day.