Browlift
Why do patients request a browlift?
With the passage of time the ligaments that anchor the skin of the forehead stretch, resulting in descent of the brow. This results in a lowering of the eyebrows and the appearance of folds of skin on the upper eyelid. Patients say that they attract unwelcome comments about being tired or worried from acquaintances and colleagues at work and are unhappy about the frown lines on the forehead and between the eyebrows. This is often a cause of significant distress and results in a request for a consultation to discuss rejuvenation of the upper half of the face.
Is there any reason for a patient not to have a browlift?
Patients who are on blood thinning medications like aspirin or warfarin should not have this procedure unless this medication can be safely stopped for the appropriate period before and after surgery.
What does the surgery involve?
The procedure is carried out under general anaesthesia and usually involves a night stay in hospital. It can be carried out endoscopically, i.e. with the help of a telescope through a small incision inside the hairline or it can be carried out as an open procedure within an incision across the hairline in a hidden part of the scalp. The incisions are sutured and quite often a head bandage which resembles a turban is applied for the first couple of days after surgery. Patients are discharged home the following day and are able to wash and shampoo their hair as normal. Sutures are removed a week after surgery.
What is the normal postoperative course?
Most patients experience significant bruising and swelling of the forehead and may have a black eye, which normally resolves in about a week. The eyebrows may appear excessively elevated for a few days after surgery but they descend to a more natural position within a period of a couple of weeks.
How much time do I need off work?
Most patients are able to return to work a couple of weeks after the procedure.
What are the potential complications for this procedure?
Complications that can arise from brow lift include bleeding, haematoma (blood clot under the skin), infection, visible scars and asymmetry. There can be a small amount of hair loss on either side of the scar but this hair normally grows back after six to 12 months. The scars can be visible especially in men as the hair line recedes.
Very rarely the nerve that supplies the forehead muscle which lifts the eyebrow may be stretched or damaged in this procedure and can result in an inability to raise the eyebrows.
