Aesthetic Surgery of the Face and Neck

The reader is presumed to have a basic understanding of facial anatomy and facial rejuvenation procedures. After reading this article, the reader should also be able to: 1. Identify the essential anatomy of the face as it relates to facelift surgery. 2. Describe the common types of facelift procedures, including their strengths and weaknesses. 3. Apply appropriate preoperative and postoperative management for facelift patients. 4. Describe common adjunctive procedures. Physicians may earn 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ by successfully completing the examination based on material covered in this article. This activity should take one hour to complete. The examination begins on page 464. As a measure of the success of the education we hope you will receive from this article, we encourage you to log on to the Aesthetic Society website and take the preexamination before reading this article. Once you have completed the article, you may then take the examination again for CME credit. The Aesthetic Society will be able to compare your answers and use these data for future reference as we attempt to continually improve the CME articles we offer. ASAPS members can complete this CME examination online by logging on to the ASAPS members–only website ( http://www.surgery.org/members) and clicking on “Clinical Education” in the menu bar. Modern aesthetic surgery of the face began in the first part of the 20th century in the United States and Europe. Initial limited excisions gradually progressed to skin undermining and eventually to a variety of methods for contouring the subcutaneous facial tissue. This particular review focuses on the cheek and neck. While the lid–cheek junction, eyelids, and brow must also be considered to obtain a harmonious appearance, those elements are outside the scope of this article. Overall patient management, including patient selection, preoperative preparation, postoperative care, and potential complications are discussed.