A facelift involves surgical tightening of the facial skin and the underlying tissues. This procedure is designed to soften or completely eliminate the natural signs of ageing of the skin. Wrinkles are smoothed out by the facelift, and the underlying tissue is raised and tightened. This makes the face look fresher and younger again. A facelift may involve various corrective procedures. These may include smoothing wrinkles on the face, forehead and neck, as well as raising the corners of the mouth and lifting the cheeks or eyebrows. However, there are natural limits to what these treatments can achieve.

Many patients look for alternatives to a traditional facelift, since they would prefer not to undergo a surgical procedure with a general anaesthetic and the associated postoperative pain. There are alternative options for wrinkle treatment, particularly if skin ageing is not too far advanced. Instead of having a facelift, many patients prefer wrinkle injections or wrinkle therapy and structuring / contouring treatments with fillers or botulinum toxin. Such treatments can generally achieve an effect very similar to that of a facelift.

An alternative to a surgical facelift called 'Smoothlift' has been developed by Smoothline. Further information about Smoothlift can be found here: Smoothlift.