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Direct excision of the turkey jowl deformity: a review of 100 consecutive cases
William H Lindsey1, Philip E Zapanta
1Northern Virginia Center for Facial Plastic Surgery, PC, Reston, VA, USA. lindsey@novafaces.com
Objective:
The aging of the neck is a combination of accumulated submental fat, platysmal banding, and redundant skin. Traditional face- and neck-lifting procedures successfully address these components. Unfortunately, the cost, both in terms of downtime and expense, often becomes prohibitive for a large section of the interested patient population. For select male patients, direct excision of the turkey jowl deformity with a straight-line closure offers a novel alternative.
Design:
A review of 100 consecutive cases of direct excision of turkey jowl deformity procedures was performed. Minimal follow-up was 1 year. All surgical procedures were performed in the office setting with local anesthesia.
Results:
Eight patients had extrusions of suture without recurrence of banding. Four patients required steroid injections for mild scar hypertrophy; 2 of these patients requested minor scar revisions 1 year later. There were no cases of postoperative bleeding, infection, or nerve injury. All 100 patients were satisfied with the overall cosmesis, and none had revision jowl surgery.
Conclusions:
Direct excision of the turkey jowl with a straight-line closure offers a major improvement in the aging neck with minimal downtime, expense, and complication rate. This procedure can be easily accomplished and safely performed in an office environment.
