Am I Too Fat For A Facelift?

Q: Dr. Eppley, I am a 55 year old women who is a little overweight. At 5’4” and 190 lbs, I wouldn’t call myself fat just above my ideal body weight. The reality is that this weight is very stable and have been relatively the same weight for almost 20 years. I exercise and eat reasonably and this is just the way it is. I am fine with that as I am otherwise healthy.  My face has always been al little plump but otherwise firm until the past few years. I have noticed that there is some jowling that has appeared along the jawline but the real problem is my neck. It has gone to hell in the proverbial hand basket. It has gotten so droopy and saggy that I know it is time for some type of necklift. My question is am I too fat to get any benefit from such a procedure?

A: Your question is a good one and would be a lot more relevant when you were younger. But as you have gotten older, enough though it sounds like you have a rounder fuller face, the skin in the neck has begun sag. This sagging is the result of the skin stretching and loosening, no longer being able to support the weight of the fat it contains. While I would have to see pictures of your neck to be certain, many females with similar situations and face shapes actually get great benefit from neck reduction/tightening. Until proven otherwise, it may be that you may get a greater benefit from a necklift than someone who is thinner with less loose skin. It would make sense to delay your facelift if you were planning on losing weight but that clearly is not the case.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana