Forehead reduction surgery is a special type of plastic surgery that involves the reduction of the size of forehead. Part of the body that one can feel awkward about, is the forehead. People can feel very self-conscious when they have large foreheads or a high hairline. Perhaps you have come across forehead reduction-surgery? Keep reading to get the necessary and vital information about forehead reduction surgery including the surgical procedure.
WHAT IS FOREHEAD REDUCTION SURGERY?
Forehead reduction surgery a.k.a hairline lowering is a unique type of plastic surgery that is designed to help reduce the size of your forehead, by shortening the distance between your hairline and your eyebrows.
WHY GO FOR A FOREHEAD REDUCTION SURGERY?
Forehead reduction surgery is done to balance the proportions of your overall facial structure . We also have other plastic surgery like alarplasty surgery. One may want to undergo a forehead reduction surgery for one of the following reasons:
- If you have a high hairline and you want to lower it.
- If you have a large forehead and you want to shorten it.
- If you have thick hair that is disproportionate to the height of your hairline.
- If you have a low heavy eyebrow and want to change the proportions of your face.
- If you recently had a hair grafting procedure and you wish to increase your hairline.
- If you recently had a brow lift procedure and you wish to bring your hairline forward.
- Transgender patients in the process of transitioning from male to female may choose to go for this procedure to obtain a lower, more feminine-looking hairline.
WHO IS A CANDIDATE FOR FOREHEAD REDUCTION SURGERY?
You may have good reasons to want to go for a forehead reduction surgery, however, your reasons are not the criteria that will make you a suitable candidate for a forehead reduction surgery. To be a good candidate for forehead reduction-surgery, you need to meet the following criteria:
- Have a high forehead
- Have good scalp elasticity
- No hair thinning
- No receding hairline
Having scalp elasticity is an important factor to consider because the stretchiness of the scalp has a direct impact on the result of the surgery. If your scalp is not elastic, tissue expansion might be done before the surgery can be completed.
It is also important that you do not have a receding hairline caused by male or female pattern baldness because after the surgery and your airline continues to recede because of further hair loss, the incision site would become visible.
HOW DOES FOREHEAD REDUCTION SURGERY WORK?
Forehead reduction surgery is straightforward and performed by a professional plastic surgeon. Usually, it lasts about 3 hours and is often performed with other procedures such as brow lifts. Your surgeon will take the following steps during the procedure:
i. The hairline and the area of the forehead to be worked on will be marked with a surgical skin marker.
ii. Your surgeon will numb your entire forehead from the hairline to above your brows with a local anesthetic.
iii. He now makes an incision along the marked area, being sure to take great care not to cut along any hair follicles or nerves.
iv. The skin will then be separated from the connective tissue underneath it and cut out the area that has been marked for removal.
v. The top incision along the hairline is pulled down to join the forehead incision. This closes the gap and shortens the forehead.
vi. Your surgeon then finally sutures your skin in a way to minimize or prevent scarring.
HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO RECOVER FROM FOREHEAD REDUCTION SURGERY?
Most times, forehead reduction surgery is an outpatient procedure, that is, you can return home within a few hours after the surgery is completed. However, you will need to return to your doctor for suture removal over the following week and a half, and you will be asked to come for post-operative check-ups 2-4 times weekly.
POTENTIAL RISKS AND SIDE EFFECTS OF FOREHEAD REDUCTION SURGERY?
If the procedure is carried out by a skilled surgeon, the tendency of experiencing any potential risk or side effects after the procedure, is minimal. However, forehead reduction surgery remains surgery and comes with common surgery side effects like scarring. Let’s take a look at some potential risks and side effects:
- Bleeding during and after the surgery.
- Possible infection of the incision site.
- Paresthesia at the surgical site.
- Possible nerve damage where an incision was made.
- Hair loss where the hairline was cut.
ALTERNATIVES TO FOREHEAD REDUCTION SURGERY
If you are not a good candidate for forehead reduction surgery, there are other alternatives such as:
1. HAIR GRAFTING
An alternative to forehead reduction surgery is hair grafting or hair transplantation. It involves taking hair from the back of the scalp and transplanting the follicles along the front of the hairline.
2. BROWLIFT
A brow lift involves manipulating the muscles or shifting the skin of the eyebrow area to lift the brows higher on the face.
CONCLUSION
Forehead reduction surgery also known as hairline lowering is a cosmetic surgery done to shorten the forehead. There are criteria you need to meet to be a good candidate for the procedure and there are alternatives you could consider if you do not meet up with the criteria. Speak with your doctor to know of other suggestions you could consider.