Cheeklift after Cheekbone Reduction

Q: Dr. Eppley, I can’t thank you enough for the time and effort that you put into answering patient enquiries. Although I may not be a direct patient of yours, your blog has helped me tremendously. Thank you for not beating around the bush, as many surgeons on RealSelf tend to do.

I’m a 24 year old recipient of cheekbone reduction surgery and had some mild midface ptosis, although I was happy from a bony standpoint. This week, I’ve undergone a temporal/intraoral incision cheek lift to hopefully alleviate the sagging. From your blog, it seemed like the most logical thing to do to directly address my cheek sagging post-op zygoma reduction.

How long after my subperiosteal midface lift should I be able to start seeing the final results? My surgeon mentioned that my temple area and cheek area would be hard and swollen. This is the case but my left nostril and lateral nose are also completely numb. I can flare my nostrils fine, but should I expect a full recovery in regards to this nerve disruption? My surgeon said a full recovery is likely but I just wanted a second opinion.

A: It is not rare to have some temporary numbness of the infraorbital nerve distribution after a midface lift which has a major access point intraorally. That should fully recover but will take 3 to 4 months to do so. Because of swelling it may be difficult to see the results of the midface lift initially but you should be able to see some initial results right after surgery. But the true and final assessment of the outcomes will be evident by six weeks after surgery.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana