Facial plastic surgery

Browlift (forehead lift)

A browlift, also known as a forehead lift, is a facial plastic surgery procedure used to elevate a drooping eyebrow that may obstruct vision and/or to remove the deep “worry” lines that run across the forehead.

Before browlift		After browlift

Indication

If you think you have excess skin in the upper eyelid, put the index finger above the mid portion of the eyebrow, and the thumb at the lateral (outside) part of the eyebrow. Lift to position the brow where you would like it to be. You will notice there is really very little excess skin. If you only remove ‘extra’ eyelid ski (like in a blepharoplasty), the brow will still be in a low position that makes the eye area look small and crowded rather than open and fresh.

A browlift, on the other hand, will make the eye complex appear more open and ‘fresh’.

To see if you would benefit from a browlift, lift to position the brow where you would like it to be. Mostly you will notice there is really very little excess skin.

Procedure

The incision is made just inside the hairline in an irregular way to avoid a straight scar. Straight scars are more conspicuous than irregularly curved ones. Also the blade is held in such a direction that about six weeks postoperatively the hair starts growing through the scar, making it almost invisible.

The foreheadskin is turned back to the forehead and pulled upward to bring the brows in their desired position a little bit over the supraorbital rims. The foreheadskin is fixed to the bone using small reabsorbable devices called Endotine (Coapt Systems Inc, Palo Alto), one on each side.

The foreheadskin is fixed to the bone using small reabsorbable devices called Endotine (Coapt Systems Inc, Palo Alto), one on each side.