As you age, your body undergoes constant wear and tear. And while your body is extremely adaptable, there's nothing you can do to stop the aging process. Wrinkles, sagging skin and fine lines are all signs of aging.
The natural aging process causes your brows to fall. As your soft tissues and skin begin losing elasticity, it shortens the distance between your eyelashes and eyebrows. The eyebrow's lower position can make you look:
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Angry
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Sad
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Tired
An eyebrow lift will not only raise your eyebrows, it will also restore a more pleasing, refreshed appearance. You may consider having a brow lift done if you have a sagging, low brow that's contributing to upper eyelid sagging.
While you can't stop the aging process, you can minimize the signs of aging, particularly in your eye region. If you're beginning to notice signs of aging, you might be considering an eyebrow lift. The question is: should you choose surgery or BOTOX® for an eyebrow lift?
What is an Eyebrow Lift?
An eyebrow lift, also sometimes referred to as forehead rejuvenation or a forehead lift, is a cosmetic procedure that raises your brows. An eyebrow lift helps to improve the appearance of the brow, the forehead and the area around your eyes. It does this by raising the skin of the brow and forehead and the soft tissue. You may be interested in a brow lift if you have brow asymmetry or a low, sagging brow.
An eyebrow lift:
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Improves frown lines between the eyebrows.
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Reduces the horizontal wrinkle lines that develop across the forehead, between the eyes and on the bridge of the nose.
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Places the brows in a youthful, alert position.
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Raises sagging eyebrows that hood the upper eyelids.
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Boosts your self-esteem and self-confidence.
The procedure can be done by itself or combined with other facial procedures, like a face-lift or blepharoplasty (eyelid surgery).
In the past, the best option for rejuvenating the upper facial area was with a brow lift through surgery. But, not all individuals are ready or even able to handle surgery, but may still want to have their wrinkles and sagging brow area treated.
The good news, there is a non-surgical option — a BOTOX eyebrow lift, which Dr. Bradford S. Patt MD, FACS performs here at the Houston Center for Facial Plastic Surgery. BOTOX Cosmetic may be suitable for individuals wanting to reduce the signs of aging on their upper facial area, but can't or don't want to deal with eyebrow lift surgery.
So, let's compare your two options: eyebrow lift BOTOX vs surgery.
Eyebrow Lift with BOTOX
BOTOX to lift eyebrows is a treatment for the frown lines between your eyebrows. BOTOX Cosmetic injections (botulinum toxin type A) can also help elevate the height of your eyebrows. These injections relax your underlying muscles, smoothing your outside skin and relaxing your muscles between your eyebrows. The treatment allows the muscles of your forehead to pull up the "now-relaxed" muscles between your eyebrows, thereby opening up your eyes and elevating your eyebrows.
The doctor can inject additional BOTOX at the ends of your eyebrows which will also relax those muscles too. Doing this will allow your forehead muscles to pull that area up as well. The amount of lift you'll obtain will vary and will depend on the tone of your muscles left active for pulling up your "now-relaxed" muscles and your age.
If you have frown lines between your brows, BOTOX can help smooth those deep wrinkles (glabellar frown lines) out without surgery.
Pros of Eyebrow Lift with BOTOX
The advantages of an eyebrow lift with BOTOX are plentiful. BOTOX:
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Doesn't require surgery and is different from a traditional surgical eyebrow lift which involves incisions and skin removal.
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Is very quick, lasting around 10 minutes depending on how many injections you get.
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Is less expensive than other treatments.
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Offers a fast and easy recovery with little to no pain.
Dr. Patt typically administers BOTOX into the frown lines between the brows. However, he can inject it into other problem areas, such as around your mouth or eyes and your forehead. The procedure doesn't require anesthesia since you'll experience very minimal discomfort.
The results appear around three to seven days after your procedure and last for up to six months. And, even though the results are temporary, wrinkles come back less severe since BOTOX causes your muscles to relax.
Plus, the more BOTOX applications you receive, the better you're conditioning the muscles of your face to relax and over time, there's even a possibility the underlying eyebrow muscles can start wearing down, producing even greater anti-aging results.
Cons of Eyebrow Lift with BOTOX
Although BOTOX helps fade frown lines completely, the actual lift it provides might not be significant. BOTOX only lasts for four to six months and you'll have to have the procedure done again to continue seeing results.
Eyebrow Lift with Surgery
Eyebrow lift surgery is performed in various ways depending on the different locations and length of incisions. The surgery is generally performed with an endoscope (a thin camera that allows the surgeon to view the inside of your body). The three types of brow lifts are:
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The endoscopic brow lift
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The open brow lift
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The limited incision lateral brow lift
Your doctor will go over these options in more detail with you to help you determine which one is best for you.
Surgery results will be noticeable around six months after the procedure, as this is the period of recovery for your scalp and hairline to heal completely.
Keep in mind as aging continues, gravity will take its toll, but parts of the lift, particularly frown line and brow area wrinkles shouldn't be as severe again and might return over the years only mildly.
Pros of Eyebrow Lift with Surgery
Some pros of the eyebrow lift surgery are:
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It addresses deeper aging-related forehead wrinkles with more dramatic results.
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Results last many years; in some cases over a decade.
A brow lift can help if you're struggling with aging signs in your upper facial area such as:
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Low or sagging eyebrows
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Excess skin or fatty deposits above your eyes
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Deep forehead wrinkles
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Frown lines between the brows
A brow lift helps by tightening the forehead soft tissues. It actually lifts the tissues as opposed to BOTOX.
Cons of Eyebrow Lift with Surgery
Surgical eyebrow lift cons include:
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Increased complications and risks come with surgery.
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Recovery can be painful and take weeks.
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Surgery can take almost an hour to perform.
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Surgery is more costly than BOTOX or other options.
Some risks a brow lift surgery are:
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Changes in skin sensation: A surgical eyebrow lift can cause permanent or temporary numbness on top of your scalp or forehead.
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Scarring: After a brow lift, scarring may be visible.
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Eyebrow asymmetry: A brow lift can lead to asymmetry, with one of your eyebrows (or both) appearing too high. This could even out during the recovery process, however. Persistent position problems or brow shape will require additional surgery.
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Hair problems: A brow lift may cause hair loss or an elevated hairline at the incision site. You may require hair grafting or scar excision if your hair loss doesn't resolve on its own.
A surgical brow lift also poses a risk of infection, bleeding and an adverse anesthesia reaction, like all types of major surgery.
Schedule Your Eyebrow Lift with Botox Appointment
If you’re not happy with how your forehead and brow area looks, consult with our facial plastic surgeon, Dr. Patt, who offers BOTOX to maintain a younger-looking appearance. To schedule your BOTOX eyebrow lift consultation with Dr. Patt, call (281) 942-6581, or complete our online form, and our helpful staff will be happy to assist you!
