General Anesthesia for Facelift and Neck lift: The Risks and Alternatives

When it comes to any kind of surgery, general anesthesia presents some of the biggest risks you’ll take. There are a lot of reasons for this, so it’s important to choose your California board certified plastic surgeon based on their expertise and alternatives to general anesthesia. Here’s what to know about facial plastic surgery with Dr. Sadati and what to expect.

What are the risks?

There are a lot of risks of general anesthesia both during and after surgery. In a recent study, the Mayo Clinic found a possible link between general anesthesia use during surgery and slightly accelerated cognitive decline in older adults. This means that patients already prone to pre-existing cognitive decline might have this process accelerated by an elective cosmetic surgery procedure like a facelift. There are some additional factors that can make this more likely in some patients like long-term health conditions. It’s extremely important to discuss these during your consultation with your chosen plastic surgeon. Most patients also experience some short-term complications after surgery like nausea that can make recovery unnecessarily difficult.

What are the alternatives?

Although general anesthesia seems to be the go-to anesthetic for plastic surgery procedures, some specific surgeries can be effectively performed with local anesthetic and twilight sedation. Twilight sedation is commonly used in colonoscopies and means that you’re able to breathe on your own, you are otherwise asleep, and don’t remember the procedure. After you are asleep, local anesthetics like Xylocaine and Lidocaine are injected to block the nerves and numb any feeling during the surgery.  The recovery from twilight sedation is much quicker and you do not have any pain afterward since the numbness with local anesthesia can last for over 12 hours. The procedure usually takes about 3 hours to perform. Facelift under local anesthesia and twilight sedation can have a lot of benefits over general anesthesia. During general anesthesia you’ll be intubated and a respirator will breathe for you. As opposed to general anesthesia that requires fasting the night before, you can have a light breakfast before your surgery.

Why does Dr. Sadati prefer the alternatives?

Dr. Sadati has pioneered a revolutionary procedure that is considered to be the next generation of high definition facial rejuvenation techniques. He is particularly known for creating natural, non-operated-looking results for patients. This can be credited to his extensive experience as well as his surgical finesse and natural artistic talent. Along with years of studying and training, Dr. Sadati has experience as a painter and sculptor, which embodies his artistic eye for, and appreciation of, aesthetic harmony. He believes that this is key to creating beautiful, natural-looking results in cosmetic surgery.

His technique has been published in the American Journal of Cosmetic Surgery as “The Double C Plication Technique” (or the Natural Facelift as Dr. Sadati calls it), which uses an innovative technique to give the patient a more natural lift to the face and neck.

For patients, one of the biggest benefits is the fact that the procedure is performed using local anesthesia and twilight sedation; therefore, patients do not experience nausea and vomiting after surgery. In addition, it reduces the cardiac and pulmonary complications associated with general anesthesia.

The results are long-lasting and will take between 10 and 15 years off of a patient’s face and neck. Also, the recovery is quicker, easier, and less painful than that of a traditional facelift. Most patients take extra strength Tylenol after surgery. No facial nerve damage can occur since his technique avoids getting too close to the facial nerve.

Dr. Sadati is an expert in this procedure, largely because he developed it. He is one of the most sought-after facial plastic surgeons in California, performing over 3500 lower face and neck lifts in his career. He has been invited to speak at many national and international conventions about this revolutionary technique. He has been voted “The Best Cosmetic Surgeon” in OC register 4 years in a row by his patients, “Top Plastic Surgeon in Orange County” in Locale magazine, and received “Best Overall Facial Rejuvenation” award at the Aesthetic Show by his peers. He also appeared on “the Doctors” show on NBC.

Schedule a Consultation

Dr. Kevin Sadati is renowned for his excellent, natural facelift results with his widely-lauded Double “C” Plication technique. To see how safe and effective facial rejuvenation can benefit you, contact the Gallery of Cosmetic Surgery to schedule a consultation with our board certified facial plastic surgeon.