Parker Center for Plastic Surgery:
Paul M Parker MD
122 East Ridgewood Ave
Paramus, NJ 07652
Call Us: (201) 967-1212
Text us: (201) 231-8662
Office Hours
Monday - Tuesday: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Wednesday: 9 a.m. – 7 p.m.
Thursday - Friday: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Saturday: 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. (Med Spa only)
Growing older does not mean you have to look older. You may have noticed that some people age more gracefully than others. Often, there’s more to this than just “good genes.” Many patients here in New Jersey owe their youthful looks to facelift surgery. When patients who visit our Paramus, NJ, practice from Ridgewood, Hackensack, Mahwah, Somerset, and throughout Bergen County, North New Jersey, and surrounding areas look younger, they often feel younger, too.
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Because gravity and the aging process affect individuals at different times, there is no “right time” to start thinking about a facelift. Both men and women concerned about improving the signs of facial aging are potential candidates for a facelift. You may be a candidate for a facelift if you experience the following:
At Parker Center, we tailor your facial rejuvenation to meet your specific needs. This may include injectable fillers and wrinkle treatments, facelift or mini facelift surgery, or a combination of procedures. Review this blog post to learn about the options for treating facial aging.
We believe plastic surgery should be accessible to as many people as possible. That’s why we offer financing through lenders that specialize in setting up payment plans for elective cosmetic surgery. We can discuss financing during your consultation.
Learn More About Financing OptionsIf you have mild to moderate skin laxity of the lower face and neck, you may be a candidate for FaceTite instead of facelift surgery. This minimally invasive treatment uses radiofrequency energy to tighten the skin and reduce small areas of fat for facial rejuvenation with minimal downtime. It will provide a relatively subtle improvement but is not a substitute for a facelift.
Injectables such as Botox (or other neuromodulators) will temporarily reduce the wrinkling caused by over-active muscles (think the “11” wrinkle lines between the eyebrows. Fillers such as Restylane (or other hyaluronic acid fillers) will also temporarily improve areas of volume loss or wrinkles.
Dr. Parker did a beautiful job on my face. I look 10 years younger, but best of all… not one person noticed I had anything done. Everyone tells me that I look really good. The staff was wonderful. The nurses are very caring and they gave out their cell phone numbers in case I needed them.”
-Facelift Patient
Medical terminology can sometimes be confusing and this facelift wording is a good example of that. A facelift, or rhytidectomy (in medical terminology, “rhytid” is “wrinkle”, “ectomy” is “to remove”, so a rhytidectomy is a procedure to remove facial wrinkles) is an operation that addresses the lower 2/3 of the aging face and is often combined with a neck lift. A brow lift, otherwise known as a forehead lift, corrects the aging forehead and eyebrows; that is, the upper 1/3 of the face. Eyelid surgery, otherwise known as a blepharoplasty, rejuvenates the aging upper or lower eyelids or both.
Our Experienced surgeon
Board-certified plastic surgeon Dr. Paul M. Parker combines an unwavering dedication to patient satisfaction with surgical expertise to create aesthetically pleasing, natural-looking results.
Meet Dr. ParkerCredentials You Can Trust
A facelift is performed to make a patient look natural, refreshed and somewhat younger, certainly not different. Dr. Parker will review pictures of the patient from 10-15 years earlier prior to surgery in planning the patient’s facelift surgery. His goal is to help reverse the signs of aging but avoid any “tell-tale” signs of doing so.
A “mini” facelift addresses the face only. A full facelift addresses the face and neck together.
A facelift or mini facelift is performed in our on-site, fully certified ambulatory surgery center called Surgiplex, LLC, under monitored intravenous sedation or general anesthesia administered by one of our board-certified anesthesiologists. The time of surgery will vary based on what type of facelift procedure is being performed as well as any additional surgeries. A full facelift typically involves the following steps:
In performing a facelift, Dr. Parker makes carefully concealed incisions in front of and behind the ear that allow him to address the lower 2/3 of the face and neck. He separates the skin along with a 3 to 4 mm thickness of fatty tissue from the deeper fatty tissue and thick fascial layer called SMAS (submusculoaponeurotic system).
Dr. Parker next lifts and tightens the SMAS with sutures (called a SMAS plication), which elevates the deep facial fat into a more youthful position. This maneuver restores a youthful cheek contour, softens the nasolabial folds and gets rid of the jowls. It also reduces the amount of skin tightening allowing for a natural appearance and typically, imperceptible scars.
Dr. Parker addresses the age-related loss of facial fat with conservative fat injections to the areas in the face which have become deficient. He harvests the fat for injection most commonly from the patient’s abdomen, purifies it, then judiciously injects it into these areas to help create more youthful contours. The patient’s pictures from 10-15 years ago help him target the fat injections. The goal here is restore what aging has changed, but be sure the patient looks natural—that “natural look” is paramount to Dr. Parker and his patients.
If Dr. Parker is also performing a neck lift, he will commonly make a small incision in the crease just beneath the chin. This will enable him to identify the inner edges of the paired platysma muscles. These muscles commonly loosen with age, causing annoying central bands in the neck. Dr. Parker will excise excess deep fat that lies beneath these muscles (called subplatysmal fat), then unify the muscle edges with sutures (called a “medial platysmaplasty”).
Next, using the incision in front of and hidden behind the ears, he will lift the outer edge of the platysma muscle on either side and suture it to the mastoid process behind the ear with sutures (called a “lateral platysmaplasty”). This medial and lateral plastysmaplasty in the neck creates a internal “hammock” effect which re-creates a natural and long-lasting youthful neck and jawline.
The last step in performing a facelift is removing the excess skin from in front of and behind the ears. Dr. Parker carefully does this, exercising his vast experience and judgement to remove just the right amount of skin and not “over-tighten” the face and neck. This allows the patient to look natural and refreshed as well as avoids an over-operated look. He then very carefully closes all of the incisions with sutures to make the resultant scars inconspicuous. In performing this type of state-of-the-art, facelift, Dr. Parker achieves a natural-looking, long-lasting lift in both the face and neck.
A deep plane facelift varies from a SMAS facelift in that the skin and SMAS layers are lifted together as a single unit and not separately as in the SMAS technique. This single plane technique does not allow the SMAS and skin layers to be tightened in different vectors to give better and more natural aesthetic results. Also, because the facial dissection is in a “deeper” plane, it potentially exposes the facial nerve branches to a higher risk of injury than with the SMAS technique.
A facelift with not eliminate fine wrinkles around the mouth nor reduce an upper lip which has lengthened with time. These issues are most commonly addressed by Dr. Parker with dermabrasion around the mouth to smooth the wrinkled areas. A lip lift will correct a long upper lip so it looks more youthful. These procedures can be performed at the same time as a facelift or separately under local anesthesia. They are relatively straight-forward in Dr. Parker’s hands and quite effective in rejuvenating the upper lip and area around the mouth.
Consultations at the Parker Center are special. Dr. Parker will spend extra time with you, ensuring that he understands your goals and that you are fully educated about each potential solution. Additionally, our imaging expert will help you see the possibilities with digital photo imaging to show you what you will look like after surgery. Patients who are comparing providers often tell us our consults are the most thorough and informative they’ve ever experienced!
Learn more about consultations at the Parker Center
Read about imaging at the Parker Center
One to two weeks before your scheduled facelift, you will undergo a one-hour, in-office, face-to-face education session with one of Dr. Parker’s Nurse Educators. During this session, the nurse educator thoroughly reviews a detailed information packet to further educate you about your facelift. This includes a discussion of what to do to prepare for surgery, what occurs on the day of surgery, and what to expect after surgery during your recovery. It’s a detailed session that really educates our patients about the entire surgical process at the Parker Center. Patients tell us they love it because they feel so well-prepared for their surgery. Learn more about what to expect during your pre-op education session.
Facelift patients are monitored overnight in the comfort of their own home by a private duty nurse. After surgery, there is very little pain and most patients do not request medication. Stitches are removed within one week. Swelling and discoloration subside within 10 to 14 days. Camouflage makeup may be applied after one week.
Patients may return to normal activities in 10 to 14 days and exercise in 2 to 3 weeks.
The Parker Center’s Rapid Recovery techniques used during and after your facelift help you heal more rapidly and comfortably than what you might experience at another practice. This means less time off from work and a sooner return to your normal activities.
Dr. Parker’s Rapid Recovery protocol includes:
The day after your facelift surgery, you can shower and resume light activities. We encourage you to move around briefly starting the first day to boost circulation.
There is usually very little postoperative pain. Patients may shower and shampoo their hair the day after surgery. We remove sutures within 10 days. Swelling and discoloration typically subside within 10 to 14 days. You can apply camouflage makeup after 1 week and resume exercise in 2 weeks.
Our Signature
Our surgical procedures, anesthesia, medications, and aftercare are tailored to minimize post-operative discomfort and accelerate recuperation.
Learn MoreI would like to thank you for the wonderful job you did on my face. Being a doctor, I know a lot about these procedures, and I also know a couple of very good plastic surgeons whom I could have chosen. Choosing you was therefore not an easy decision for me, but the results show that I wasn’t wrong….I have no reservations in recommending you to any person interested in having plastic surgery.”
-Facelift Patient
A facelift does not stop the aging process. If Dr. Parker performed a facelift on one of two aging twins, the patient who had the facelift will always look younger as they both continue to age. It is said that a biplane SMAS facelift should last approximately 8 to 12 years. This number will vary based on an individual’s genetics, how well they maintain their health, and whether they smoke, tan excessively, or have substantial weight fluctuations.
To meet with Dr. Parker and his team in Paramus, New Jersey, to learn more about facelift surgery and other facial rejuvenation options, request a cosmetic consultation using our online form or call (201) 967-1212 for an appointment.
It’s important to consider the big picture when it comes to facial plastic surgery. Signs of aging often occur across many areas of the face, such as the eyes, cheeks, jawline, and more. If you want to enhance multiple areas at once, you may want to combine other facial plastic…
Read MoreThese days, you have a number of options to help you rejuvenate your appearance, no matter what age you are. During your with Dr. Parker, he will listen to your concerns and examine your face to assess your skin quality, soft tissue laxity and volume. He will then customize a treatment plan along…
Read MoreIf you’re considering facelift surgery to address jowling, sagging skin and facial wrinkles, you probably expect the procedure will help you feel more youthful, refreshed and better about your appearance—and you’re right. The vast majority of patients are thrilled to look in the mirror and see a younger version of…
Read More5 Reasons to Choose
We believe plastic surgery should be accessible to as many people as possible. That's why we offer financing through lenders that specialize in setting up payment plans for elective cosmetic surgery. We can discuss financing during your consultation.
Results: Dr. Parker is known for remarkable results that may surpass your expectations
Your ResultsSafety: Our state-of-the-art, fully licensed, Medicare-accredited surgical center meets the highest standards of safety
Your SafetyEducation: We give you all the information, empowering you to make informed decisions
Your EducationRapid Recovery: Our protocol includes massage, medications, and advanced surgical techniques for reduced downtime
Your Rapid RecoveryPatient Experience: We create a positive, supportive environment in our beautiful, private facility
Your Atmosphere
