Brow lift (forehead lift, browplasty)

Operation theory

Depending on personal predisposition and increasingly with age, the following unwanted changes may occur in the upper half of the face: pronounced horizontal frown lines, drooping eyebrows with more noticeable lines on the upper eyelids, deep anger lines and laugh lines around the eyes in the temple area (crow’s feet). When the changes start to appear, treatment with Botox alone is sufficient in some circumstances. Where the changes are more pronounced, an operation is required to perform the correction. A scar-minimizing technique is generally used, featuring several short incisions in the hairy skin of the forehead and temple. A brow lift is often combined with an upper eyelid correction; this makes it easy to access the small muscles between the eyebrows which are responsible for the formation of anger lines. The correction involves partially removing and hence weakening these muscles. The effect is similar to a muscle deactivation with Botox, although the results are permanent. In a brow lift, the skin on the forehead and temple is removed together with the muscle tissue underneath and reapplied in a higher position. An open brow lift with a curved incision stretching from ear to ear is performed if the changes are more pronounced.


OP duration

2 hours.


Anaesthetic

Local anaesthetic with sedation (half-sleep) or general anaesthetic.


Hospitalization

Out-patient / day-patient or 1 night.


Risks

Secondary bleeding, infection or overextension of the nerve branch that supplies the forehead muscles, which can lead to a weakness in the frown. This happens rarely (1%) and is generally reversible.


Recovery time

Work: 7-10 days. Physical exertion/sport: 4 weeks. Avoiding exposure to strong sunlight or extreme cold: 6-8 weeks. Final result after 6 months.


Post-Treatment

The drains are removed after one day; the dressing is removed and hair washed on the discharge day. A temporary loss of sensitivity between the eyebrows can occur on the forehead.


Outcome

Lifting is an aesthetic procedure with reconstructive character that restores a condition like it was around 10 years earlier. Thus the clock is turned back 10 years, after which the ageing process continues, however. There is normally no problem repeating the operation after 10 years at the soonest.


before / after


Your doctor
Dr. med. Andreas Tschopp
Dr. med. Andreas Tschopp
T: 031 970 30 70
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Dr. med. Hyunju Kim Haemmig
Dr. med. Hyunju Kim Haemmig
T: 031 970 30 84
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Prof. Dr. Daniel F. Kalbermatten
Prof. Dr. Daniel F. Kalbermatten
T: 031 333 33 10
Contact form

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