According to the Dermatology Times, thread lifts were invented as a solution to a problem that lasted for 120 years! “Until recently, the only way to address problems caused by facial skin laxity…was facelift surgery.”
It is a great help to all the beauty regimens of the world that we live in a time where more beauty treatments have been invented and are still being invented. At the same time, more options mean that you have to study a little more before you can pick the right treatment for you.
Read on to learn all about thread lifts and facelifts, how they can benefit you, and how you can choose between them.
What Is a Facelift?
The facelift is a procedure that goes all the way back to 1901. Ever since, it’s been an extremely popular treatment choice for people, especially women, who want to stay looking younger longer.
A facelift starts with anaesthesia. Depending on your health profile and the advice of your doctor, you could have general anaesthesia or intravenous sedation. While general anaesthesia will put you completely to sleep, intravenous sedation puts you into a state that is more like relaxation than actual sleep.
Depending on how much anaesthetic is used, you may still lose all memory of the experience, just as during sleep. Nonetheless, intravenous sedation is a milder anaesthetic choice.
Once, you’re anaesthetized, your plastic surgeon will make incisions along your hairline and ears. Excess and sagging skin can then be removed, and your skin will be lifted onto the lines of the incisions. The result is an amazing improvement in the tightness of your skin and loss of wrinkles.
What Is a Thread Lift?
The thread lift is a relatively new procedure. It may interest you to know that Gwyneth Paltrow is credited with first popularizing the thread lift. Her endorsement of the procedure took it from obscurity to worldwide fame.
In a thread lift, there is no need for incisions. Instead, small cones are inserted under the skin. The cones grip the skin and are then used to pull the skin up into a tighter position. The cones then dissolve away, but your skin stays in its new and improved position!
As it is a milder procedure, a thread lift is more likely to use intravenous sedation than general anaesthesia.
Recovery Time: Facelift Vs Thread Lift
After a facelift, it may take up to a week for a patient to recover enough to fully take care of themselves. Even after that, there may be visible bruising for another week or so. The results may be worth it, but it is definitely a time-intensive process to get them.
Thread lifts, on the other hand, usually use only localized anaesthetic. It wears off in less than an hour, and a patient is fully functional from that point forward. Not only are they functional, but thread lift recovery time is so short that patients can look healthy and free of any trace of surgery within only a few days.
Cost: Facelift vs Thread Lift
Fortunately for women everywhere, advancing technological and economic developments have brought the cost of both of these beauty treatments down significantly.
These days, a facelift can cost around $10,000 on the high end. A thread lift can cost as much as $5000. In some cases, you may even only have to pay $2,000.
Invasiveness: Facelift Vs Thread Lift
As you might have guessed at this point, facelifts are more invasive than thread lifts. The nature of a facelift procedure requires long incisions to be made across almost the entire perimeter of the face. These wounds have to be carefully cared for after the procedure.
When it comes to noninvasive facelift procedure alternatives, thread lifts are the clear winner. They are also invasive, but only minimally.
Instead of incisions, thread lifts only make small puncture wounds. These wounds heal faster and require much less care after the procedure.
Longevity: Facelift Vs Thread Lift
Considering their higher cost and greater invasiveness, patients are right to expect that facelifts must give better results in some way. And they are right.
The results of a facelift last far longer than those of a thread lift. In fact, a facelift can provide some level of improvement to skin quality for a full decade!
A thread lift will probably need redoing after only 18 months at the most. In some cases, they can last less than a year.
Depending on your lifestyle, you might prefer relatively frequent, short thread lift procedures. On the other hand, an intensive facelift procedure might be worth it to have the whole matter done with for many years so you don’t have to worry about it.
Getting the Best Results: Facelift Vs Thread Lift
Depending on your own skin, you might not be looking for extreme corrections. In that case, either a facelift or a thread lift can serve your needs. On the other hand, if you want more extreme results, a facelift has much more potential to give you what you’re looking for.
In many cases, facial thread lifts are preferred by a somewhat younger population looking for mild improvements. Facelifts become the only viable option for patients who are older.
Getting Results Fast: Facelift Vs Thread Lift
At some point in your life, you may find that you suddenly want your skin to look better, and you need it done fast! In this case, the thread lift procedure is the clear winner.
A quality thread lift can potentially look more than presentable after a single day. If you’re not so lucky, it can still be ready for social gatherings in only two or three days. A facelift won’t be ready for around two weeks.
Look Your Very Best With These Powerful Beauty Treatments
We hope you learned something helpful about thread lifts and facelifts in this brief review. To learn more about these and other beauty treatments that can help you look your best, contact us today.
