What Is The Best Way To Remove My Turkey Neck?

Q: Dr. Eppley, I am a healthy 65 year-old women with a large turkey-like hanging directly under my chin as well a bit of jowls. When I pull the skin back at the jaw angle/ear area, I see a great change and I look like myself again…like I did 20 years ago. What type of necklift is this? I do not feel like a need a facelift but just a necklift.

A: The turkeyneck is a common problem and there are many people who have this pessky aging issues but are happy with the rest of the face…or at least it does not look as bad as the neck and jowl area. This hanging neck skin must be treated by moving it up and backward to hidden incisions around your ears where it can be removed and invisible scars left in its wake. Your perception of a facelift is common with the belief that it is a top of the scalp down to the neck procedure, which it is not. A true isolated facelift only treats the lower 1/3 of the face, exactly where your concerns are. As a result, it is a much simpler and easier procedure to go through than most patients envision. Your proof that this is the correct procedure is evident by the presurgical facelift ‘test’, pulling up and back around the ears and jaw angles creates the desired neck and jowl changes.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana