The mini facelift is sometimes known as the weekend facelift because of how quickly it can be performed and how short the recovery period is. The procedure generally enhances key facial areas with less risk and less stress than standard facelift surgery. Additionally, the cost of the mini facelift makes it an attractive option, since it reduces minor sagging around the cheeks, jawline, and neck much more economically than the conventional facelift approach.

What Is the Mini Facelift?

The mini facelift, along with the related s facelift, is a relatively new technique. Also known as “the weekend facelift,” it can be performed quickly and involves a shorter recovery period than traditional facelift surgery. The mini facelift focuses on specific areas of the face, such as the neck and the folds of the nose. Using smaller incisions and often taking advantage of endoscopic facelift technology, the cosmetic surgeon lifts, repositions, and removes facial tissue to achieve optimal results. Once factors contributing to unwanted sagging and drooping have been eliminated, the surgeon carefully repositions the skin using small sutures.

Candidates for Mini Facelift Surgery

A mini facelift is appropriate for people who are just beginning to experience the first signs of aging but do not want to wait to undergo more intensive surgery. In general, those who opt for this relatively simple “ weekend” facelift are still in their 30s or 40s. Usually they want to remove minor sagging or drooping around the cheeks, jowls, and neck area. For those wishing to address more serious sagging, a lower facelift is probably a better option.

Standard Facelift vs. Mini Facelift

Traditional facelift surgery is appropriate for patients who would like to enhance their appearance by reducing wrinkles and sagging throughout their entire face. The mini facelift, by contrast, is intended for patients who wish to reduce sagging and droopiness only in specifically targeted areas. Mini facelift procedures cannot address areas such as the forehead or brow, whereas traditional facelifts generally produce results even in these problem spots. A plastic surgeon can advise you on the merits of each procedure and help you make an informed decision about which is best for you.

Mini Facelift Techniques

Because the cosmetic problems targeted are relatively minor, the incisions made during this low-stress “ weekend” approach to facelift surgery can be quite small. As a result, the mini facelift is one of the least invasive procedures in facial surgery.

Depending on the situation, an endoscopic or a non-endoscopic approach may be used. An endoscopic procedure allows the doctor to insert surgical instruments through three or more small cuts made around the area to be treated. These are used to remove excess fat and reshape muscles in the face that are causing cosmetic problems. The surgeon watches the procedure via a small camera also inserted below the skin. If the procedure is non-endoscopic, more continuous incisions will be made and the skin will be turned over to expose the area to be treated. Both approaches to the mini facelift involve minimal cutting of the skin, thereby reducing the risk of scarring and other potential facelift complications.