For many individuals, their necks have aged sooner than their faces and what they desire is to restore symmetry between their neck and face. Some have recently lost weight and have excess skin around their neck. For others, it is simply a matter of genetics leaving them with too much fat or skin around their necks. Many patients who complain of having a fleshy neck, jowls, neck banding, or a "turkey waddle" can benefit from a neck lift. Reshaping the neck can be done as an isolated procedure or in conjunction with other plastic surgeries such as a facelift.
A neck lift can correct jowls, excess skin on the neck, vertical banding and horizontal creases on the neck. By tightening the neck skin and underlying muscles, a more youthful appearance and a more contoured jawline is created.
A good neck lift candidate has fullness under their chin and jowls as well as sagging of neck skin and muscles. If your neckline and neck contour improves when you pull back the area you are a likely good neck lift candidate.
During a traditional neck lift, an incision is created in front of the ear near the ear canal and continues behind the ear, ending along the hairline. Fat is redistributed and sculpted in the jowl and neck region, and the platysma muscle, which is responsible for the appearance of vertical bands in the neck, is often tightened. Excess skin is trimmed away. Another incision is sometimes created under the chin to remove fat or repair muscles.
For the appropriate candidate a neck lift can be performed through just a small incision under the chin and if needed additional incision behind the ears. The underlying muscle is repositioned to provide a youthful neck contour and excess skin removed.
