Facelift for North Salem, NY

An ageing face changes in two ways

Faces age along two separate lines. Tissue loosens and slides downwards, which brings jowls, a softer jawline and loose skin at the neck. And the face loses volume, particularly in the cheeks, which leaves hollows and deepens the creases from nose to mouth. A facelift is the answer to the first. By itself it does not always answer the second, which is why Dr. Chang Soo Kim plans for both at once. He operates at Bellava in Bedford Hills, about 19 minutes from North Salem without traffic.

What the lift does

Working through incisions hidden in the hairline and the creases around the ear, Dr. Kim tightens and repositions the supporting layer under the skin, takes away unwanted fat beneath the chin and along the jowls, and trims only the skin left over. That reshapes the cheeks, jawline and neck from within, so the result looks lifted rather than stretched. It is an outpatient operation under local anesthesia with sedation.

Where volume comes in

• Your own fat, during the facelift. Fat grafts can be placed in the creases and contours of the cheeks in the same operation, a step Dr. Kim describes on his own site.
• Fillers, before or after. Hyaluronic acid fillers from Bellava’s injector team restore lost volume in the cheeks and soften folds; Sculptra works more gradually, by prompting your skin to build new collagen.
• A liquid facelift instead, for now. When the changes are early to moderate, Bellava’s liquid facelift uses dermal fillers to restore volume in areas such as the cheeks and temples, with no incision at all.

Who is likely to need both

Dr. Kim’s description of a good facelift candidate lists several things at once: loose skin along the jaw and neck, deepening creases between the cheeks and the mouth, cheeks that have lost volume, and sometimes fullness under the chin. The third is the reason volume belongs in the same conversation. Non-smokers, and people with less sun damage, generally heal towards the better result.

The surgeon

Chang Soo Kim, MD, trained at the Yale School of Medicine and Yale–New Haven Hospital and is certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Connecticut’s first Sciton Joule laser system was his, and laser and radiofrequency platforms sit alongside the scalpel in how he plans a face.

North Salem patients ask

Is it all one operation? The lift, fat grafting and laser resurfacing can be done together. Fillers or Sculptra are separate appointments with Bellava’s injectors, led by Donna D’Alessio, MD.

Will I stay overnight? No. You go home the same day from Bellava’s accredited Bedford Hills suite.

How do I begin? Request a free consultation with the button on this page, or call or text; the patient coordinator calls you back to arrange it. See Dr. Kim’s results and the main facelift page first.