Mini Neck Lift

Mini Neck Lift in Toronto

Most patients’ concerns with the appearance of the neck can be simplified by categorizing them into anatomical components:

1. Excess fat under the skin (e.g. ‘double chin’)
2. Excess fat under the platysma muscle (causes blunting of the chin neck definition)
3. Muscle bands due to lax muscles (vertical cords in the neck commonly seen in older patients)
4. Excess skin, stretched skin, or wrinkled skin (e.g. ‘turkey gobbler neck’)

The goal in treating your neck is to utilize the least amount of surgery to accomplish your wishes. plastic surgeon
Lawrence Tong, MD is committed to this principle, and will always recommend the appropriate procedure for your specific neck concerns. For appropriate patients, a Mini Neck Lift can achieve dramatic rejuvenation of the neck with minimal scarring.

Mini Neck Lift vs Neck Liposuction vs Neck Lift

This chart indicates which neck procedure addresses various neck issues.

Neck Liposuction: A patient with only excess subcutaneous (under the skin) fat can be treated with Neck Liposuction.

Neck Lift: When a patient has excess skin (i.e. loose, sagging, or stretched) or inelastic neck skin, a Neck Lift is needed. A Neck Lift also removes fat in the subcutaneous (under skin) and deeper subplatysmal (under muscle) layers, and eliminates muscle bands.

Mini Neck Lift: A patient with excess fat in one or both layers, and/or muscle banding should undergo a Mini Neck Lift. This implies that the patient has good, elastic skin.
A Mini Neck Lift is a much smaller procedure than a regular Neck Lift, and a great option for patients who have concerns about their neck that do not involve loose or stretched skin.¹

Benefits of a Mini Neck Lift

A mini neck lift makes the neck slimmer and more youthful looking with only a single incision under the chin. The procedure is designed for patients who have excess fat in one or both layers, and/or lax muscles in the neck, but no excess skin.

Specifically, the procedure does the following:

• Removes fatty tissue from the neck and ‘double chin’ area
• Removes deeper fatty tissue underneath the platysma at the chin/neck junction, thus deepening the angle underneath the chin
• Removal of vertical muscle bands, and tightening of the platysma muscle

Candidates for Mini Neck Lift

The procedure is best suited for patients who do not have sagging, stretched, or loose neck skin. If this condition exists, a Neck Lift is likely more appropriate.

Best Candidates:

• Generally younger patients (30-50’s)
• Good skin tone in the neck
• Some excess fat in the neck (either subcutaneous or subplatysmal)
• Some muscle laxity in the neck, with a blunted angle under the chin

Other Criteria:

• Patients should be generally fit and healthy
• Smokers must quit at least 2 weeks prior to surgery

Dr. Tong will evaluate your overall health status to determine if this surgery is appropriate for you.

Mini Neck Lift Scars

Any surgical procedure will leave some type of scar, but the scar from a Mini Neck Lift is smaller than a traditional Neck Lift scar and is easily hidden. The incision for a Mini Neck Lift is 3 cm long, located in the ‘double chin’ fold. It is difficult to see, due to its location underneath the chin — even when the scar is new. Once the scar has matured, the vast majority of patients and their close friends/family will rarely, if ever, notice it.

The Mini Neck Lift Procedure

Dr. Tong performs the procedure under general anesthesia or IV sedation. He conducts your surgery in the private CPSO accredited surgery centre, on the 2nd floor of 7 St. Thomas Street, where our offices are also located.

Dr. Tong begins the Mini Neck Lift by first performing liposuction in the chin and neck region. This portion of the procedure is the same as in Neck Liposuction. The next step continues by extending the liposuction incision to approximately 3 cm, then exposing the underlying muscle and fat layer. The muscle is then split along the midline to expose the underlying fat. The fat under the muscle (the subplatysmal fat) is removed at the chin and neck junction. This maneuver is key to achieving a deeper angle under the chin. The muscle layer is then plicated (tightened) to eliminate banding caused by muscle laxity. The combination of the subplatysmal fat removal and muscle plication helps to create a deep, well-defined chin neck angle. Finally, Dr. Tong stitches the incision back together meticulously. After the last stitches are placed, a dressing is applied and you are gently awakened from anesthesia.

Recovery After Mini Neck Lift

Our nursing staff will monitor you in the post-anesthesia recovery area after your surgery. Dr. Tong will allow you to go home after the effects of anesthesia have worn off, accompanied by your friend or family member.

At home, you may do non-strenuous activities such as watching television, listening to music, reading, and making meals. Otherwise, you should try to rest and relax as much as possible. Sleep in a reclining chair, or use multiple pillows to keep your head elevated when you sleep. This helps decrease swelling and speeds up healing. Pain is typically mild and narcotic pain medication will be prescribed. It is generally used for less than 5 days. There will be some bruising typically lasting from a few days to 2 weeks. A removable compression dressing is provided; we encourage you to wear it as much as possible during the first week. After the first week, patients are recommended to wear it when sleeping at night for an additional 4 weeks.

At one week after surgery, you will have an appointment to see Dr. Tong to have your stitches removed. The majority of patients return to non-strenuous work at 5-7 days. Dr. Tong will likely allow you to start light exercise (e.g. walking) at 2 weeks after surgery. Avoid strenuous activities until 4 weeks after surgery. After the initial post-op visit, you will follow up with Dr. Tong at 6 weeks, 6 months, and one year after surgery. Post-operative photos will also be taken at these visits.

As with any surgery, there are risks involved with the Mini Neck Lift. Although the procedure has a low risk profile, Dr. Tong will make sure to go over the pertinent potential problems associated with a Mini Neck Lift at the time of your consultation.

How to Choose the Best Plastic Surgeon For You

Your Mini Neck Lift Consultation

Patients should obtain all the information about their surgery options before making a decision. Our first goal is to educate you. We feel strongly that an educated patient will make better choices about their surgery and their surgeon. The initial consultation may take over 45 minutes to complete. Dr. Tong will make sure that you understand all aspects of the surgical process. You will never be rushed or pressured to make a decision.

To learn more about how Mini Neck Lift surgeon Dr. Lawrence Tong can help you with improving your neck, set up a Mini Neck Lift consultation by giving us a call at (647) 691-0256. If you wish, let us give you a call; just fill out our contact form and we will call you on the same or the next business day. No physician’s referral is necessary.

¹  Kaplan JL. The Single Incision Minimally Invasive (SIMI) Neck Lift. Plast Reconstr Surg Glob Open. 2019;7(5):e2208. Published 2019 May 16. doi:10.1097/GOX.0000000000002208. Available: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6571294/. Accessed March 30, 2021.