What Should I Ask at a Facelift Consultation?

Credentials and Accountability

1. Which board certifies you, and in what specialty?
2. Where do you hold hospital privileges, and for which procedures?
3. Is the operating facility accredited, and by which organization?
4. Who administers anesthesia, and what are their credentials?

The Operation Itself

1. What specific operation are you recommending for me, and why that one?
2. What plane will you dissect, and what will you release?
3. How many of these do you perform per year?
4. What will this operation not fix?
5. Will you address my neck, and how?
6. How long will the operation take, and will anything be combined?

Risk, Recovery, and Aftercare

1. What is your hematoma rate, and how do you manage blood pressure perioperatively?
2. What happens if I have a complication at two in the morning, and who do I reach?
3. What is included in the global postoperative period, and for how long?
4. What is your revision policy, and who pays for facility and anesthesia in a revision?
5. May I see unretouched photographs of patients with anatomy similar to mine, including results you consider average rather than best?

What a Good Answer Sounds Like

Specific, unhurried, and willing to name limits. A surgeon who says a particular result is not achievable with your anatomy, or that your primary problem is volume rather than descent, is giving you more useful information than one who agrees with everything you propose.

Be cautious of consultations conducted entirely by a patient coordinator, pressure tied to a same day discount, reluctance to itemize fees, and photographs that never show an average result.

Limits of this answer

• A consultation cannot tell you what your result will look like. Simulations and imaging are planning tools, not commitments, and should be described that way.
• No question list substitutes for verifying credentials independently through the certifying board and the state licensing authority, both of which are free to search.
• A surgeon may reasonably decline to state a precise personal complication rate if their volume is too small for the number to be statistically meaningful. The important thing is whether they engage with the question honestly.

Frequently asked questions

How many consultations should I have?

Two or three with differently trained surgeons is common and useful, because it reveals where recommendations converge and where they reflect individual preference.

What are red flags at a consultation?

Same day pressure or discounts, no itemized fee, no discussion of risk, refusal to show average results, and a surgeon who never says no to anything.

Should I bring photographs of results I like?

Yes. They communicate goals efficiently, provided the discussion then turns to whether your anatomy can produce that result.

Can I verify what I am told?

Yes. Board certification, state licensure, and hospital affiliation are all publicly verifiable, and any surgeon should welcome the check.

Related pages

Mansher Singh, MD, FACS what to ask at a facelift consultation reviews and trust checks

642 verbatim patient reviews from the practice Google Business Profile, plus credentials you can confirm at the issuing source.