Post Facelift; why your doctor wants to see you long after your surgery is over.

Follow-up examinations are a very important part of your facelift surgery and facelift recovery. The timing and frequency of your follow-up examinations will vary, depending on if you’ve had a facelift or minilift, and the decisions made by your facial plastic surgeon.

Typically, patients are seen 24 to 48 hours after surgery, and at the time of suture removal. Weekly and then monthly visits are scheduled as they are determined by your particular needs. Dr. Ahn prefers to see his patients quite regularly so he can continue to monitor and evaluate your post-operative results.

It’s not unusual for the final results of your facelift to manifest themselves up to 12 months following surgery. However, if you should experience any unusual symptoms or have concern about your recover, we urge you to contact your doctor.

Here is an example of the follow-up schedule at The AWC.

1 day after surgery

• To remove all of the dressings applied after surgery
• To make sure you are feeling well and all is going well post-op
• To wash your hair

1 week after surgery

• All stitches are removed
• A close check to make sure things are healing as they should be
• To show you how to hide any bruising and/or swelling with makeup
• To offer moral support if you need it

3 weeks after surgery

• A check to monitor overall healing
• To address any issues or concerns you may have
• To offer moral support when necessary
• To offer reminders on what activities can be resumed
• Information is shared to help you returning to work/life

5 weeks after surgery

• We start assessing the overall aesthetic improvement
• A brief check on overall healing
• An overall survey of any ongoing issues (numbness, last bit of swelling, redness of suture lines etc.)

8-10 weeks after surgery

• Brief exam
• Review of how things are progressing

4-5 months after surgery, and again at 9 months after surgery

• Brief exam
• Discussion on overall aesthetic improvement
• Discussion of any concerns

12 months after surgery

• Brief exam
• Discussion on overall aesthetic improvement
• Discussion of any concerns
• Final pictures, set up side by side with pre-op photos that are emailed to the patient.

As you can see, it’s important to work with a board certified facial plastic surgeon that is interested in every step of your recovery – and it’s equally important for you to keep all of your follow-up appointments. If you have any questions, we encourage you to contact our office and speak to a member of our profession staff.