What is a brow lift?
Brow lift surgery, also known as a forehead lift, is a procedure in which the forehead and brow area is lifted upwards. This is a way to effectively correct the loosened tissue in the forehead area. A brow lift often results in a more youthful appearance.
Other facial procedures, such as upper eyelid surgery, a face lift, or various laser treatments, can be done together with brow lift surgery.
A brow lift is always a surgical procedure. Most brow lifts nowadays are endoscopic surgeries; coronal brow lifts that leave a long scar to the hairline are done rarely. A well-done endoscopic brow lift doesn’t leave prominent scars, and the result looks natural.
Brow lift surgery is rarely done with local anesthesia because the surgery includes the drilling of small bone tunnels for the stitches.
Who does brow lift suit?
Brow lift surgery suits people whose forehead and brows have settled lower than normally. This settling of the forehead and brows often appears as a heavy feeling in the upper eyelids. The client might have initially been seeking for upper eyelid surgery instead.
Brow lift surgery does not have age recommendations. Sometimes, because of genetic reasons, lifestyle, or weight loss, aging appears on the face at a younger age; in these cases, a brow lift can be done already at 30-45 years. Brow lift surgery does not have a maximum age if the client is in basic health.
If the settling is significant, over 15 mm, an endoscopic brow lift may not be a strong enough procedure. Here, a coronal brow lift may be needed to achieve a significant lift to the face. A coronal brow lift is the most suitable option if the hairline needs to be brought forward as well.
How long do the results of a brow lift last?
The results of brow lift surgery last for the rest of your life. However, every one of us will continue to age even after the best brow lift.
Brow lift surgery doesn’t stop aging. Instead, it turns back the clocks. Both face and brow lifts treat the settling of tissue and the forehead, their looseness and the excess, but it doesn’t affect the elasticity or condition of the skin itself.
However, with modern procedures, we can slow down future aging. Enhancing facial and skin treatments after surgery can be used to improve and maintain the good surgical result. Non-surgical treatments are mostly the best suited for this.
More Information
Brow Lift – The Procedure and Recovery
The decision to proceed with surgery is made during an appointment with the surgeon. Before surgery, photographs of the face are taken.
Brow lift surgery does not require preparation. However, tell the doctor before surgery about any medications that may increase the tendency to bleed, the use of natural products, and smoking.
Use of Medication and Natural Products
Smoking and Nicotine Products
Smoking and the use of nicotine products must be stopped completely six weeks before surgery. After surgery, you should refrain from smoking and using nicotine products for four weeks.
The use of nicotine products impairs the wound healing process and significantly increases the risk of complications.
Before the Procedure
Take a shower on the evening before the procedure or on the morning of surgery. Any piercings should be removed from the treatment area well in advance of the procedure.
Before surgery, you must not eat or drink for six hours. Before surgery, the surgeon makes the necessary markings on the skin with a marker while the patient is in a standing position.
The Procedure
The procedure takes approximately 3 hours, depending on its extent.
A brow lift is usually day surgery, meaning that the patient is discharged in the evening. For the following night, the patient remains in a semi-sitting position with the head elevated and applies cold compresses to the operated area.
More extensive face lift procedures require general anesthesia and an overnight stay at the hospital. This ensures good initial recovery and aftercare.
Recovering from Brow Lift Surgery
Recovery from a brow lift takes a couple of weeks.
After surgery, you are not bedridden, but recovering, which means that you can carefully do light everyday activities immediately after surgery. However, it is advisable to take it easy during the first week of recovery.
After the procedure, there is a tight, painful sensation in the forehead, which during the first few days often requires a medium-strength or strong painkiller in addition to Panadol and Burana.
The required length of sick leave is 1–2 weeks.
Swelling
After surgery, the face swells, and bruising develops around the eyes. The disappearance of swelling is individual and usually takes 1–2 weeks. Facial lymphatic drainage can help speed up the reduction of swelling.
During the first few days, straining, frowning, and bending down should be avoided, as this increases pressure and therefore swelling in the operated area. It is also advisable to keep the head of the bed slightly elevated.
Use of a Head Bandage
A head bandage is used around the clock for 5 days. After that, the head bandage is used if needed. The duration depends on the extent of the surgery.
Follow-Up Appointment
The postoperative situation is checked approximately one week after surgery. Swelling lasts for one to two weeks, but mild swelling may last longer. The duration depends on the extent of the surgery and the healing properties of the tissues.
The final result of brow lift surgery can be assessed after 3–6 months, once final tissue healing has taken place.
After Brow Lift Surgery
- The wound (head bandage) should be kept dry for 5 days.
- Medication:
- Panadol 1 g: 1 tablet 4 times/day together with Burana.
- Burana 800 mg: 1 tablet max. 3 times/day.
- Targiniq 2.5 mg: 1–2 tablets if needed before going to sleep.
- Probiotics are recommended during a course of antibiotics.
- Washing and support garment
- You may shower on the fifth day after surgery, once the dressing has been removed.
- Washing products can be used as normal. However, they should not come into contact with the surgical wound.
- The wounds should be rinsed once/day with lukewarm water in the hair-bearing area. Allow the area to dry carefully before putting on the support garment.
- Support garment
- For the first five days, the head bandage should be worn 24 hours/day. After this, the headband should be worn at night if needed.
- Restrictions
- Swimming, sauna, and bathing are prohibited for 1 month after surgery.
- Strenuous exercise should be avoided for approximately 6 weeks after the procedure.
- Stitches
- The stitches dissolve on their own approximately 1–2 weeks after the procedure.
- No smoking
Possible Complications of Brow Lift Surgery
A brow lift is usually a relatively extensive surgery, and every surgery involves risks. A brow lift involves the same possible complications as other surgeries: bleeding, bruising, unattractive scarring or excess scar growth, wound infection, or necrosis of the wound edge.
The most significant risks of a brow lift are bleeding, which often occurs during the first hours in the recovery room and has an incidence of 1–2%, wound healing problems, for which you will always receive help from us, and nerve damage.
Mild numbness on the scalp occurs in almost every patient for several weeks. Sensory changes will resolve, but damage to the motor nerve of the forehead can be permanent. Fortunately, the risk of this complication is only approximately 1%.
In experienced hands, complications are rare, and the result is good and long-lasting.
