Newspaper Articles
Newspaper Articles
Turkey and Thanksgiving go together like no other holiday and food combination. While there is no evidence that it was ever actually served at the first pilgrim’s festival, it became a mainstay shortly thereafter. While many will anxiously await for their share of the turkey this holiday, whether it is a leg, breast or stuffing, no one aspires for the turkey neck.
This fleshy fold of hanging skin, known as the neck wattle in the bird, appears in people as well. While in turkeys it occurs mainly in the male, in humans the turkey neck is not gender specific. As we age, the appearance of one’s neck often becomes a bothersome issue. The loss of a once smooth jaw line and a shapely neck shows the effects of gravity and time. Catching one’s profile in a picture can sometimes be disturbing…who is that older person with such a floppy neck?
While creams and other potions do much to alleviate’s one’s pocketbook, the turkeyneck is otherwise a surgical problem. Forget about non-invasive options or ‘lunchtime’ type procedures. These simply will not work for the dangling neck no matter how they are marketed or hopeful one is. For the full neck with good skin, and if one is young enough, good results can be had with liposuction alone. But when the skin is loose and floppy, fat removal alone with only make the neck skin more loose and floppy.
If you can grab a wad of neck skin and fat between your fingers, then some form of a facelift procedure is what is needed. Using the term facelift can be confusing as this procedure often conjures up images of extensive surgery from the forehead down to the neck. In reality, a facelift is really a neck and jowl operation and does not affect the face above the jaw line. It is a poorly named procedure and the term necklift would more accurately describe it than calling it a facelift. It is really less extensive and easier to go through than most people actually think.
When it comes to facelifts (aka necklifts), there are numerous options.Which one is best for any particular person is determined by how much loose neck skin one has. Some jowling and a little loose neck skin may only need a limited facelift. (often called the Lifestyle Lift) If there is a lot of loose neck skin, then the more complete facelift is really needed. This is a powerful neck changer and can produce some really dramatic results. For those that want the least invasive amount of surgery but with a dramatic change, the turkeyneck can be directly cut out in a procedure appropriately called the direct necklift.
The turkeyneck is not a desired culinary item on the bird and many people don’t like it on themselves either. While year round turtlenecks are always an option, a little skillful carving may be a better solution.
Dr. Barry Eppley
Indianapolis, Indiana
The association of turkey and theThanksgiving holiday goes back for over three hundred years. While there is no real evidence that it was ever served at the first pilgrim’s festival, it became a mainstay shortly thereafter. While many people will anxiously await for their share of the turkey this holiday, albeit a leg, breast or otherwise, nobody aspires to have a turkey neck.
This well recognized fleshy fold of hanging skin, known as a wattle in the bird, appears in people as well. While in turkeys it occurs mainly in the male, in humans the turkey neck is not gender specific. For some, the neck is often one of the biggest areas of concern as one ages. The loss of the once smooth jaw line and a more well-defined neck angle are telltale signs of the effects of gravity and time. The turkey neck is just an advanced stage of neck aging as it eventually flops from side to side in the older patient.
While year round turtlenecks are an option, it is otherwise a surgical problem. Forget about non-invasive options or ‘lunchtime’ type procedures. These simply will not work for the turkey neck no matter how they are marketed. If the neck and jowls are made up mainly of fat with good skin, as usually occurs in the younger patient, then good results can be had with liposuction alone. But when the skin is loose and floppy, fat removal alone with only make the neck skin more loose and floppy
If you can grab a wad of neck skin between your fingers, then some form of a facelift procedure is what is needed. Using the term facelift can be confusing as this procedure often conjures up images of extensive facial surgery throughout the whole face. In reality, a facelift only effects the neck and jowl area and will do nothing for the face above the jaw line. It is a poorly named procedure and a facelift should be called a neck-jowl lift. It is really less extensive and easier to go through than most people actually think.
In actuality, there are only two types of facelifts… limited and full. Which one is best for any particular6 person is determined by the amount of loose neck skin that one has. If the loose neck skin is not extensive, a limited facelift may be enough as this lifts the loose jowl skin a lot and the loose neck skin a little. If there is a lot of loose neck skin, then a full facelift is really needed. This is the most powerful neck procedure and can produce some really dramatic results. The differences between the two are how much of an incision is needed around the ear and the number of days of recovery needed. (even though the recovery is really about how you look or a social issue, there is next to pain at all for either)
Dr. Barry Eppley
Indianapolis, Indiana