Men’s Facelifts Are (a Little) Different

You might not see too many tabloid headlines asking, “Did he or didn’t he?” about whether male celebrities underwent facial plastic surgery, but the fact remains: The number of men getting facelifts is increasing. Image-conscious men in an increasingly competitive work environment are more likely than ever to consider facelift surgery. In Austin, Dr. Blagg and I have also seen an uptick in men wanting both surgical and nonsurgical facial rejuvenation.

As you might have already guessed, we tailor facelifts specifically for men, because the procedure calls for different techniques than when we are working with female facelift patients. Both men and women share some general overall goals — they want to look like a more youthful version of themselves, in a way that appears natural — but the desired result is a little different.

• Incisions: Men’s side burns and beards require a different incision location to keep the side burns in a position that looks natural. This is one reason why it’s important that a man considering facelift surgery chooses a plastic surgeon with experience performing male facial plastic surgery. Some men like to wear their hair short, or even shave their heads, so that also requires extra skill in making incisions with well-hidden scars in the natural contours of the ears.
• Goals: As mentioned earlier, both men and women undergo facelift surgery to address concerns they have about sagging skin and tissue. But most men want to retain a somewhat rugged, more masculine appearance with a chiseled jawline. Women, in most cases, want a smoother, more delicate feminine contour.
• Chin projection: Chin position in male facelift surgery is important to consider, because a more prominent chin helps create more desirable results. In some cases, we can combine facelift surgery with implants to augment the chin.

Even though women are more likely than men to discuss their decision to get a facelift with family and friends, statistics show that plenty of men are going to plastic surgeons to improve their appearances. In 2015, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, 10% of facelift patients were men.