Classification of facial rejuvenation techniques based on the subperiosteal approach and ancillary procedures.

Subperiosteal face lift is a new way of doing facial rejuvenation. There are multiple variations of technique described by several authors. Each variable introduced to the technique may be relevant to the final outcome and potential safety or complications. The most important variables are extent of dissection, combination of the subperiosteal dissection with other planes of dissection, suspension methods, and use of ancillary techniques. A systematic classification of techniques in which a lesser or greater subperiosteal dissection is made has been devised. Each technique is individualized and differentiated from seemingly alike techniques. A list of ancillary techniques is included. This classification is useful for facial evaluation and preoperative planning. A surgical proposal is made individualizing each patient's facial aesthetics rather than giving one type of operation to every patient. This classification is also useful for comparison and analysis of surgical results obtained with different techniques. It has the versatility of adding new variations and any ancillary technique adapted to the surgeon's idiosyncrasy. It can be used as a model to develop a classification of traditional face lift techniques.