The Liquid facelift (Liquid lift)

Modified on | by Dr. Ricardo L. Rodriguez
A collage of photos of a patient before & after a Liquid facelift.
Before and After Liquid Facelift (courtesy Allergan)

When I perform surgery in my Baltimore surgery center, I routinely combine multiple procedures in the same operative session. For example: Brazilian butt lift with Tummy tuck, Facelift with lip aug – I’m very comfortable with all these combinations and it is fairly common in my practice. However, when it comes to injectables I am just beginning to realize the dramatic opportunities in combining Botox and Facial fillers for a more youthful appearance.

The Liquid Facelift is a quick and temporary solution to wrinkles

Several months ago I saw a female patient who had a social event coming up and wanted a “quick and easy” surgical procedure with minimal downtime. At the time, I frankly did not offer her anything because I thought what I could deliver with fillers and Botox would only be temporary, and require more money than just an “impulse buy”. Sometime later, a male friend of mine requested something non surgical that would make him look younger without any downtime. Thinking about that last patient I had seen, I offered a combination of fillers (sculptra, Restylane/Juvederm) and Botox. Still uneasy, I tried to explain to him, that for the money, he might as well have surgery. Then, what he said surprised me.

He looked at me straight in the eye and told me that what I had described (fillers with botox) did indeed sound more attractive than surgery. He did not want to experience any downtime at all! Furthermore, he knew he would have to repeat the injections within a year, but that to him, it was still better than surgery. Time IS a big issue for a lot of patients. He wanted results now and without any downtime. So, I performed the combination of injections and he is very happy with his results.

Liquid Facelift is performed with the use of a filler and botox/xeomin

Which brings me to today’s subject: The Liquid facelift. I first heard about it from Heidi Rebuck, a Juvederm and Botox rep. “The Liquid facelift” is basically what I did with my male patient, using a filler with Botox, but I think these pictures of “The Liquid facelift” are worth a thousand words.

Basically, the patient in the photo (courtesy of Allergan) had Botox to forehead and “crow’s feet” wrinkles around the eyes, with tissue fillers to the lips, nasolabial folds (folds that go from side of nostrils towards the corners of the mouth), and possibly under the eyes. The change is dramatic and substantial.

This experience has made me reevaluate how I listen to patient’s requests. As a result I am much more inclined to offer these “temporary solutions”, as they are indeed perfect for a lot of people. As a matter of fact, most women do approach temporary beauty solutions as a matter of course. Think of hairdos, facial creams, even sun tanning, none of which are “long lasting”, yet essential to good appearance.

The Liquid facelift, takes “non-invasive” beauty treatments to an entirely new level. I am very excited about it and you would do well looking into it.

(Article originally posted February 27, 2008)

By Dr. Ricardo L. Rodriguez MD Board Certified Plastic Surgeon Cosmeticsurg Baltimore, Maryland Ricardo L. Rodriguez on American Society of Plastic Surgeons.

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3 thoughts on “The Liquid facelift (Liquid lift)”

  • Jeff of LiquidFacelifts.org says:

    It's not often that I learn stuff about a niche I know so much about every day, but the fact that you do multiple procedures in one operative session is something I never really thought about. That's impressive, Dr. Rodriguez!

  • J. Gordon says:

    Hi Dr. Rodriguez, I saw you today for my one year follow up after breast reduction. We discussed the secondary breast reduction dog ear correction, and also facial fat grafting and lipo to lower facial cheeks. So, I looked at your site for photos of the facial procedures and saw the blog about the Liquid Facelift. Except for the lipo under the chin, would fillers and/or botox be an option for me? Thanks, Judy Gordon

    • Dr. Ricardo L Rodriguez says:

      Yes, fillers are an option for the fat grafting part of the procedure, but they are temporary. Fat is permanent. Also the volume amount you would need can get expensive. The liposuction part of the lower face can't be done with fillers as fillers do the opposite of liposuction. You can come to the office back again and I will discuss fillers in more detail. I can also inject saline for free, saline lasts only a few hours but it lets you see how certain areas of your face would look like with fillers.