Evaluation of Elastic Lift for Facial Rejuvenation

Abstract

Thread lift is a minimally invasive procedure for facial rejuvenation, but complications of thread lift have been reported. The purpose of this study was to evaluate outcomes and safety associated with elastic lift in relation to midface and upper mandibular region lifting. Thirty-eight patients with sagging and laxity of the facial skin treated with elastic lift from September 2015 to October 2015 were enrolled in this study. Treatment was performed following the manufacturer’s recommended protocol that called for 300 treatment lines. To evaluate elastic lift safety, a retrospective chart review was conducted. We used an automatic skin diagnosis system to evaluate the efficacy of elastic lift. Thirty-seven patients were female, and one patient was male. The mean age of the patients was 40.4 years, and their mean follow-up period was 3 months. There were no major complications manifesting in removal of the elastic thread during the follow-up period. The median skin laxity grade score was 5 (3–6) before surgery; the median skin laxity grade score was 3 (2–4) 3 months post-surgery, resulting in a statistically significant difference in skin grade score (P<0.01). Facial rejuvenation using elastic lift is an effective and safe procedure in select patients with midface ptosis and moderate jowls.