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A revision facelift, or secondary facelift, is a facial procedure performed months or years after a patient’s initial facelift. A revision facelift in Washington DC can be performed for a number of reasons.
These can range anywhere from wanting to freshen one’s appearance after a successful facelift to wanting to correct/improve a facelift that did not provide the desired results.
While the latter situation can be a source of frustration, oftentimes results can be improved with careful analysis, planning, and meticulous execution.
Dr. Rad specializes in primary and revision facelifts, and his aesthetic vision and technical ability are widely sought out by patients seeking the best facelift in the DC, northern Virginia area, the northeastern US, and across the nation.
Patients who are healthy, non-smokers, and who have reasonable goals and whose anatomy is favorable for correction (this depends largely on Dr. Rad’s assessment) may be good candidates for revision rhytidectomy procedures. You should be clear on the reasons for which you seek revision facelift as there are many motivations, most often being quite personal.
Dr. Rad has extensive experience in treating patients who have many reasons to have corrective facelift. The 5 most common reasons patients seek Dr. Rad’s expertise for revision facelift are as follows:
Your vision for your results will emerge through detailed consultation with Dr. Rad, meticulous examination of your anatomy, and careful pre-surgical planning. While Dr. Rad’s surgical approach is unique for each patient, the goal of naturalness remains constant.
Actual Washington DC Face Life Patient of Dr. Rad’s
See More Top Facelift Results
Sherber+Rad cannot guarantee specific results.
Individual results may vary.
Safety is Dr. Rad’s highest priority and he take many steps to ensure patient safety.
Number 1: If general anesthesia is needed, then, for safety reasons, your surgery will be done in the safest environment, which is an Ambulatory Surgery Center that is part of a hospital campus.
There, Dr. Rad works with a board-certified anesthesiologist and large team of experienced surgical nursing staff, which offer an unparalleled level of safety.
Number 2: Dr. Rad has tremendous depth of experience in facelift surgery, and so risks of complications are very low.
Number 3: Dr. Rad focuses on minimizing tissue trauma, and so risk of tissue damage is very low.
All in all, risks are extremely low in the right hands, right environment and with the right surgeon and team.
Think of this as “driving the safest car on the safest road with no traffic” where you know you’ll get from point A to point B without worry for a terrible car accident.
You may hear that the safest plastic surgeons have “operating privileges” at major hospitals.
“Operating privileges” allow surgeons to perform surgery at that hospital, and they are granted following a 6-month process of evaluating a surgeon’s background.
Dr. Rad’s credentials have rigorously been vetted by the top hospitals in DC and northern Virginia, specifically Sibley Hospital (DC), Inova Fairfax Hospital and Fair Oaks Hospital (northern VA), and George Washington University Hospital (DC).
This means that his training, board certification and safety record meet the high standards of these top hospitals in DC and northern Virginia.
Motor nerves, called “facial nerve branches” stimulate the muscles that move the face, and injury to these nerves is rare.
Temporary stunning of facial nerve branches occurs in about 2% of cases which is in line with the average for the best facelift surgeons in the US.
Keep in mind that stunning means that the nerve function comes back, and in Dr. Rad’s experience, all patients who have had temporary nerve stunning has had 100% return of nerve function.
Permanent nerve injury is practically zero, and we say “practically” because in skilled hands one can be sure that it doesn’t happen, whereas in unskilled hands it can. Dr. Rad’s rate of permanent nerve injury is in fact zero.
Risks of general anesthesia for facelift surgery are very low when delivered by a board-certified anesthesiologist.
Unless Dr. Rad believes that your procedure can be done under local anesthetic, your anesthesia will be very light, somewhat like “twilight” such as during colonoscopy.
Keep in mind that general anesthesia has a wide range of depths and that for facelift surgery, it is quite light. Generally speaking, you can expect home the same day, which means that recovery from anesthesia is quite safe and quick.
While the chance of needing to stay overnight in hospital is very low, nonetheless it is not zero, and so Dr. Rad doesn’t even take that chance.
Most often, an overnight stay is for precautionary reasons. For example, if a patient is too sleepy after anesthesia so that oxygen levels aren’t at a safe enough level to go home then this would be a reason to monitor in hospital overnight.
At a surgery center that is on a hospital campus, we have the flexibility to make that determination immediately, whereas having surgery in an office setting is not necessarily so straight forward.
Recovery is defined by the length of time to get back to “activities of daily living”.
Generally, these factors depend on how extensive your procedure is, which is determined by the correction needed and whether other procedures, such as blepharoplasty, brow lift, rhinoplasty, etc., are done simultaneously.
Dr. Rad will guide you with regard to your unique situation, and generally speaking, you are home the same day and doing ADLs almost immediately.
Dr. Rad does not advise “bed rest.” Bruising and swelling typically takes 2-4 weeks to resolve, longer if you are prone to bruising, and often can be concealed fairly well at week 2 or 3.
Return to work can resume very soon if your work is not strenuous and you feel “up to it” – typically this is 1-3 weeks. Return to exercise depends on intensity, frequency and whether weight training is involved: weeks 1-2 involves walking to stationary cycling (Peloton), weeks 2-3 involves toning with “low weight, high reps”; weeks 3-4 weeks for more intense activity such as HIIT classes, and weeks 4-6 for unrestricted heavy weight lifting and intense HIIT.
As recovery varies on a case-by-case basis, Dr. Rad will guide you.
Experience is crucial. In the spirit of the “10,000 hour rule,” your surgeon should be very experienced, and talented technically and artistically, which comes with doing many facelift surgeries.
How can you know how experienced a surgeon is? In general, the most skilled surgeons not only have basic requirements of training at exceptional institutions and certification by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, but they are also at least a decade out from finishing his or her training.
The literature is clear that less experienced junior surgeons are more prone to making errors than more experienced surgeons.
Experience is represented by multiple factors: how many before and after images are shown to you, how much information on facelift is presented online, and how expertly your surgeon explains the procedure and rationale to you during consultation.
Publications in scientific journals also indicate vetted expertise. Your surgeon should be able to demonstrate evidence of facelift expertise by showing multiple results of facelifts generally, and of facelifts in patient with similar anatomy and concerns as yours. A lack of evidence indicates lack of experience, which indicates lack of expertise.
Revisions are more complex than primary (first time) surgery and usually require a higher level of expertise to correct for many reasons:
• Scar tissue present in multiple planes (layers) can distort tissues and make surgical revision more challenging
• Midface, ear and neck anatomy have been altered and possibly distorted as compared to normal anatomy, and the degree of distortion can make revision more challenging.
• In the year after prior facelift, tissues may still be healing and recovering especially if there was a complication, and one must be careful about the timing of undergoing a secondary rhytidectomy to be sure that tissues are not stressed more than necessary.
• Many subtle irregularities or distortions may require a multi-modality approach including fat transfer and non-surgical treatments such as laser and injectable medicines.
• In corrective situations, patients may be distraught by the outcome which can make a secondary facelift, with the associated risks, more challenging to manage emotionally and psychologically
Our plastic surgery office in Washington DC is centered on your comfort and privacy. You’ll be received by our exquisitely attentive staff, and escorted to your own private cabana wherein you’ll feel relaxed and comfortable while consulting discreetly with Dr. Rad. First Dr. Rad will determine if you are a good candidate for surgery and during your consultation you should decide if Dr. Rad is the right surgeon for you. Credentials are crucial and, in addition to being Board certified in plastic surgery, Dr. Rad is Assistant Professor at Johns Hopkins, and he enjoys an impeccable reputation as a top flight aesthetic surgeon. His facial plastic surgery expertise is sought out as one of the best surgeons in Washington DC, northern Virginia and the US. Your safety is Dr. Rad's primary concern and he will review your medical history. You should inform Dr. Rad of any medical problems or medications that may affect your healing. If you are medically appropriate to undergo surgery then Dr. Rad's focus will be to understand what specific aesthetic concerns you have. Washington DC patients expect natural results with minimal downtime. Dr. Rad will spend time carefully listening to your concerns, asking clarifying questions and then masterfully guiding you, step by step, to understand how your unique anatomy can be improved to convey a rested appearance. Dr. Rad’s goal is to determine the most comprehensive approach for long lasting, natural results while minimizing downtime. Dr. Rad first needs to understand your specific concerns and you should prepare your thoughts prior to your consultation. Think of words that convey how you feel about your appearance. For example, Washington DC patients often say they look fatigued, tired or lackluster because of undereye bags or dark undereye circles, or they look sad, upset or disinterested such as from heavy eyebrows, excess skin above the eyes or downturned corners of the mouth. Patients often relate concerns of looking older than how they feel and this can be caused by jowls, nasolabial folds, loose neck skin, lines and wrinkles. Try to put into words how your appearance bothers you, and the priority you give to each area. Dr. Rad will then present to you his expert opinion about which procedures would be best to restore your anatomy to create a rested and refreshed appearance. And since surgery is intricate Dr. Rad will guide you through a stepwise approach of aesthetic analysis and he’ll deliver his recommendations in a clear and honest manner. Dr. Rad will present all options available in modern day surgery, both non-surgical and surgical. Dr. Rad and Board certified dermatologist Dr. Sherber often collaborate to optimize patients’ results and to minimize invasiveness. As such Dr. Rad’s modern approach to surgery harnesses the power of both dermatology and plastic surgery as both specialities address different aesthetic challenges. For example, plastic surgery is effective to lift, tighten and volumize loose, atrophied tissues, whereas dermatologic treatments such as laser, radiofrequency tightening and skincare are best to improve skin texture, pigmentation and tone. Dr. Rad can address any concerns regarding skin quality and how to obtain and maintain optimal results. Dr. Rad will review with you photos of his patients’ results (many of which you’ll not find online due to privacy concerns) to highlight his aesthetic approaches and skill. He will take your photographs, which remain confidential, to assist with the planning of your surgery. For your safety Dr. Rad performs surgery in a hospital-based operating room, considered to be the safest environment, rather than in the office. Anesthesia is delivered by a board certified anesthesiologist (MD) and you’ll be under light anesthesia which is important for your safety and comfort. You will receive a customized quote for the procedures in which you’re interested. Once approved we may then move forward with pre-operative preparations and you will meet with Dr. Rad again at your final in person consultation prior to surgery. Dr. Rad’s reputation as one of the most technically gifted surgeons attracts patients nationally and from around the world. We cater to patients from across the globe by arranging virtual consultations, luxury accommodations at The Jefferson hotel, Washington DC’s most luxurious 5 star boutique hotel, as well as private nursing care. Your privacy, comfort and safely achieving exceptional results are our top priorities.
WHAT CAN I EXPECT FROM MY CONSULTATION WITH DR. RAD?
Dr. Rad’s credentials speak for themselves: Princeton (B.S.E, Magna Cum Laude), Duke School of Medicine (M.D.) and University of London (Ph.D.) educated and Johns Hopkins Plastic Surgery trained, he is a Diplomate of the American Board of Plastic Surgery, Assistant Professor at Johns Hopkins, and long-standing member of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons and the American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery.
Dr. Rad is considered an expert in facial plastic surgery and microsurgery. He is ranked the #1 plastic surgeon in Washington DC based on aggregate ratings from all independent ranking websites: “top rated local“, “three best rated” top plastic surgeon and “top plastic surgeon reviews“. SHERBER+RAD have never engaged in paid advertising, and all rankings, reviews are from vetted and respected sources.
In Dr. Rad’s DC practice, the cost for facial aesthetic lifts starts at $18,000+ for targeted in office “mini lift”, $29,000+ for more advanced face and neck lifts, (“deep plane” or ponytail methods), $49,000+ for surgeries combining other procedures (blepharoplasty, brow lift, fat grafting, etc.), $75,000+ for complex anatomy, corrective work and up to $150,000 for extensive facial surgery requiring multiple operations (such as adding rhinoplasty, facial bone augmentation or shaping, custom facial implants, etc.). Note that pricing is customized for each patient and these guidelines do not necessarily apply uniformly. Also keep in mind these are approximate ranges and total cost depends on multiple factors: your unique anatomy, goals, complexity of the procedures, recommended techniques, whether corrective work is needed, in-office or hospital-based operating facility, and combining multiple procedures (increasing concessions apply for multiple procedures).
Although you may receive varying cost estimates from other practices, keep in mind that your surgeon’s education and training, plastic surgery board certification, his/her experience (at least 8 years of experience after residency is recommended), and the “X” factor of aesthetic artistry and surgical skill (i.e., talent) of your surgeon are important factors in pricing. Dr. Rad’s goal for every patient is to achieve nuanced and natural results with minimal recovery, and we have mechanisms in place to bring your goals in financial reach.
Dr. Ariel Rad strives to deliver the best facelift Washington, DC has to offer. To find out more about facial cosmetic surgery and our financing options, schedule your consultation by contacting our office today.
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Sherber+Rad1101 15th St. NW, Suite 100, Washington, D.C. 20005
This lovely patient had prior facelift with problems (i) and (ii): Dr. Rad corrected the scar line with meticulous “retro-tragal” position (i.e., placed behind the tragus and along the natural curvatures of the ear. Her overall facial symmetry is greatly improved, as well, after deep plane face and neck lift.