The natural aging process, gravity, sun exposure and stress all take a toll on our skin.  Rhytidectomy or face lift can’t stop the effects of aging but it can visibly improve the tell-tale signs.  Face lifts work by removing excess fat, tightening underlying muscles, and redraping the skin on your face and neck.  A good candidate for a facelift surgery is a man or women whose face and neck has begun to sag but there is still elasticity in their skin.  Most patients are in their forties to sixties but it can also successfully be performed on patients in their seventies and eighties.  Face lift procedure involve incisions in front of or behind the ear, incisions can extend to the scalp.  The skin is separated from deeper tissues, the skin is re draped and the surgeon uses his best judgment to decide how much excess skin is removed. Along with tightening the skin and muscles the surgeon may also liposuction the neck and jowls.