The upper areas of the face have come into the limelight in the last year and a half. With many people wearing masks when they go out of the home, we’ve become much more aware of how our eyes affect our appearance. Problems like undereye bags make us look tired. Issues with the upper eyelids, such as hooding and heaviness, can make us appear sad or angry. The upper eye area is influenced not only by thinning eyelid tissue but also by the position of the eyebrows on the forehead. This is why a plastic surgeon may recommend a brow lift instead of an eyelid lift. Some of our patients choose a combination of the two.

A brow lift focuses on lifting and repositioning the tissue on the forehead. The procedure can release the muscles that form frown lines and place the brow line back along the upper orbital rim, where it belongs. This procedure smoothes horizontal forehead lines and can also improve the symmetry of the eyebrows. Here, we discuss what patients often want to know about this procedure, what it’s like to recover from a brow lift.

Brow Lift Recovery

Fortunately, the majority of patients who have a brow lift experience very little postoperative pain. The recovery timeframe is 10 to 14 days, but patients can expect comfort to improve significantly within the first week. Patients are advised to set aside the first two days after their brow lift to simply rest and sleep as much as needed. The procedure may be performed with general anesthesia or a local anesthetic and sedation. If general anesthesia is involved, nausea may occur during the early postop phase. The surgical team may be able to recommend an antinausea medication to ease this side effect. A light dressing is placed over the brow area after surgery. Sometimes, the surgeon will place a drain tube to prevent the buildup of excess fluid beneath the skin. These are usually removed in a day or two. Pain is usually minimal after the effects of anesthesia wear off. Patients can take an over-the-counter pain reliever like acetaminophen to manage their comfort.

After brow lift surgery, patients should sleep with the head elevated on two or more pillows. It may be helpful to sleep in a recliner with soft pillows on each side and a neck pillow for support. Elevation helps fluid drain more efficiently away from the surgical site, so can keep swelling and bruising to a minimum. It is possible to shower and wash hair beginning two to three days after surgery. Knowing this, patients should bathe and wash their hair the day before surgery. Strenuous activity must be avoided for a few weeks. The doctor can discuss when normal activities can resume during the post-op visit. This usually occurs about one week after surgery. For the most part, patients generally return to work after two weeks and gradually ease into exercise and other activities three to four weeks post-op.

Some degree of residual swelling and bruising may remain after two weeks. This is typically mild enough to cover with makeup. The final outcome of the brow lift continues to settle in for two to three months. However, patients enjoy beautiful results well before that time.

Learn more about brow lift surgery and what it can do for you. Contact our Cincinnati office at 513.985.0850 for a consultation with Dr. Donna Krummen.

Have you begun to notice that your eyes look different as you’ve gotten older? Have others? Maybe you’re asked more often than you’d like, “are you ok?” When we think of aging, we may consider how creases and wrinkles make us look older. We usually don’t think about the way changing musculature and skin volume might cause the eyebrows to descend over the eyes. This area of the face is not immune from aging. The various tissue-changes that occur can not only cause the eyebrows to droop but usually also cause the face to take on a certain vibe. That could be tired, angry, sad, or worried. None of these perpetual expressions are appealing to most people. A brow lift could be the ideal solution.

What Happens to the Forehead and Brows?

Aging doesn’t just affect the skin; it affects subcutaneous tissue, muscle, and the very bone structure that gives the face a contoured foundation. When it comes to the upper third of the face, there are multiple muscles at play. One set of muscles pulls the eyebrows upward toward. Another pulls them down and together. Each person makes unique facial expressions throughout their life, which results in a particular pattern of upper face creases. Facial expressions may also dictate which part of the brow line droops. In addition to the weakening and contractions of muscles across the forehead, the eyebrows are affected by thinning skin and the loss of volume in the fat pads that plump all areas of the face.

Lifting the Aging Brow Line

In recent years, Botox has become one of the most popular methods of correcting a sagging brow. Nonsurgical lifts are ideal in some cases but they do have their drawbacks. For more impressive results that last for years, some patients choose a surgical brow lift. There are a few common techniques that a surgeon may use.

A coronal brow lift accesses muscle and other tissue through an “open” incision. This runs from ear to ear across the top of the head. The incision sits behind the hair line, where the resulting scar cannot be seen. After making the incision, the surgeon lifts the skin and repositions muscle and fatty tissue to correct laxity. The skin is draped so that the eyebrows sit appropriately along the upper orbital rim, the bony ridge over the eye. Skin is trimmed and incisions are closed.

An endoscopic brow lift is performed through multiple small incisions, also hidden behind the hair line. Through one incision, the surgeon inserts a tube with a camera on the end. This endoscope provides visualization of the surgical field. Through other incisions, tiny instruments are inserted. These reposition muscle and other tissue to correct brow ptosis. Incisions are closed with stitches.

Regardless of technique, brow lift surgery can achieve outstanding results that last many years. To learn more about this procedure, call our Cincinnati office at 513.985.0850.

Aging affects every part of the face. Usually, we see the signs of aging around the eyes first. When the eyes start to look droopy and heavy, the natural tendency is to use the muscles of the forehead to lift the eyebrows. Doing this makes the eyes appear more open and energetic. We may do all of this without really even thinking about it. Over time, the persistent lifting of the forehead leads to even more lines and creases. To end this vicious cycle, many people think they need a brow or forehead lift. We might disagree.

Brow Lift Surgery

A forehead or brow lift is a surgical procedure in which the brow position is corrected. This upper facelift requires the manual lifting and tightening of the forehead skin and underlying tissue. The loose skin on this part of the face is often referred to as excess. It’s not; it’s just skin that has lost its elasticity and firmness. The appearance of droopiness around the eyes is worsened by a loss of width and fullness in the temple area. Removing tissue does not address this issue.

Dermal Fillers as an Alternative to a Brow Lift

Many people find the idea of nonsurgical facial rejuvenation appealing even though these treatments do necessitate periodic touch-ups. With dermal fillers as a liquid brow lift technique, there is no risk of causing a surprised appearance that cannot be reversed. Using dermal fillers, it also becomes possible to correct the narrowing of the temple that ages the eyes.

Dermal fillers work by increasing the volume of the tissue beneath the skin. Products like Juvéderm achieve this by inserting hyaluronic acid into the dermis where the acid particles bind to water molecules. It’s a simple chemical process that has been proven safe and effective through years of clinical use. To lift the brow line and smooth wrinkles on the forehead, dermal filler is inserted at the temples, along the brow, and directly beneath horizontal creases. The hyaluronic acid is gently massaged to create even, natural-looking volume in the upper face that lasts for up to 12 months.

Refresh your brow and forehead area with proven injectable solutions. Contact our Cincinnati office at 513.985.0850 to schedule your consultation and treatment.

Raising the bar. It’s something that a lot of people like to do as often as possible. We might refer to them as Type A personalities; the ones who “get things done.” Raising the bar can mean a lot of things. To us, it means striving for the ultimate quality of service for patients of our Cincinnati cosmetic surgery practice. To our patients, raising the bar means improving an aspect of their appearance that they are no longer satisfied with. One of the common ways to raise the bar on facial appearance is to raise the brow.

The Aging Brow

The loss of collagen does a doozy on the upper parts of the face. And the lower. But what we have seen from recent research is that many people express a substantial increase in satisfaction and confidence when they resolve age-related laxity around the eyes. This may be because it’s incredibly difficult to ignore the way that age changes our very expression. If laxity and gravity work to pull the outermost edges of the brow line down, a person may appear as though she lacks confidence or is perpetually sad. The downward pull of the innermost edges of the brow line sends a person into the realm of unfriendliness or anger. Neither end of this spectrum does much for human interaction, nor for a personal sense of confidence. That is why brow lift surgery is so valuable.

Which Treatment is the Right Treatment for a Sagging Brow?

Seeing the need for change is one thing. The problem that many of our patients have is that they recognize this need, but don’t know what to do about it. With the multitude of non-surgical treatments that are available today, discerning whether or not surgery is needed can be quite difficult. The good news is that, in most cases, there is no rush to schedule a surgical brow lift. If you are starting to notice that your eyes appear heavy and tired, talk with us about treatment options. In many cases, BOTOX and dermal fillers can restore youthfulness to the eyes. It is when these treatments either don’t give you the lift you want, or they do not produce results that last as long as you’d like, when surgery may make the most sense.

Schedule a Consultation

Facial rejuvenation is a very personal journey that we can help you with. To learn more about eyelid rejuvenation, contact our Cincinnati office at 513.985.0850 today.