Why do a thread lift?
Dr. Mark Beaty does not put in thread lifts as he feels the risks are high for minimal reward. However, there are several reputable surgeons that like the temporary result and ease of performing a thread lift procedure. If your changes are relatively mild and you do not want to take a week off of work for a minimal incision facelift, then a thread lift may be a good option to consider.
Who is an appropriate candidate for a thread lift?
Only patients with minor laxity and thicker skin should consider a thread lift. A surgical lift is always the preferred method, so only consider thread lift if you are not a surgical candidate. A thread lift is a temporary improvement. A surgical result with a facelift is longer lasting.
What are the risks of thread lifting?
The primary risk of a thread lift is infection and inflammation. Next would be threads that extrude or show beneath the skin. Our two surgeons have had to pull threads out of patients on several occasions due to these complications. These experiences are one more reason that our surgeons are not fans of this thread lifting fad.
Why are patients choosing these over surgery?
Most patients that we’ve talked to were convinced by someone that the changes would be more significant and the risks of the procedure were minimized. While there are plastic surgeons doing these procedures, thread lifts are also offered by non MD or DO providers and by physicians without plastic surgery or facial plastic surgery training. Most of these practitioners have gone to weekend seminars and expect everyone’s anatomy to be the same, so you can see why suboptimal results and complications often arise.
What do our surgeons recommend?
Dr. Beaty feels a facelift surgery, either a mini lift or a more significant deep plane lift, will give the absolute best results. The downtime and recovery of surgery is far less than most people think. Certainly, they both advocate that patients optimize non-surgical procedures such as Ultherapy and Profound to boost collagen and give a facelift a better or longer lasting result without the fear of infection or threads popping, extruding, or showing through the skin.
