Why You Can’t Order the Kris Jenner Facelift

When a mega-watt star like Kris Jenner gets impeccable work done, everyone takes notice. And in the weeks after her refreshed face made headlines, experts have noticed an influx of made-to-order requests for Jenner’s exact procedure, vocab words and all. And it’s no surprise—when the work looks that good, it’s bound to capture patient interest, and the deep plane facelift is certainly experiencing a boost thanks to Jenner. But according to Pittsburgh plastic surgeon Leo R. McCafferty, MD, there is no one-size-fits-all menu to results that good. Rather, it takes an artistic eye combined with a customized approach and excellent technical skill to get a facelift that’s celebrity-worthy.

Understanding the Deep Plane Facelift

These days, celebrities are more transparent about their procedures and treatments than ever before. That, in turn, presents an opportunity for surgeons to talk their patients through the buzzwords and marketing.

“Moments like Kris Jenner’s coverage are opportunities to educate patients,” Dr. McCafferty explains. “For example, a lot of that coverage has called her procedure a deep plane facelift. But most patients don’t fully understand what that implies.”

In the 1970s, surgeons moved from a skin-only approach to facelifts that include the SMAS (superficial musculoaponeurotic system)  layer, lifting and tightening to produce more natural results. Then, in the 1980s, the deep plane facelift gained prominence. This procedure repositions the SMAS (rather than just tightening it) and is often marketed as the most advanced approach to facelifts. But the evidence doesn’t bear that out—with the Twin Study, or “Identical Twin Face Lifts with Differing Techniques: A 10-Year Follow-Up,” demonstrating no difference in quality between the SMAS and deep plane lifts.

“The term ‘deep plane facelift’ has been a big buzzword in the plastic surgery world, often prompted by celebrity procedure results,” Dr. McCafferty says. “But that term implies something about other facelifts that are not true. At this point, all facelift techniques address the ‘deeper plane’ to some degree.”

And it doesn’t really go that deep.

“Patients are also often under the impression that we are going in and lifting all the facial muscles,” Dr. McCafferty says. “That is not true. The deepest plane of the face are the muscles of animation, where the muscles are attached to both the bone and the skin in the areas of the face that move. There is basically no plastic surgery that will violate or manipulate those muscles of facial expression.”

Why You Can’t Order Another Person’s Facelift

“Kris Jenner’s face is unique. Your face is unique,” Dr. McCafferty explains. “Her exact procedure would not produce those results if the person had a lot of sun damage, for example.”

Even your own face often needs multiple approaches to ensure the best result.

“Often one side of the face is treated a little differently, because of those subtle differences,” Dr. McCafferty notes. “Add factors like age, skin quality and whether or not this is their first or second facelift, and you start to see that facelifts are about so much more than choosing between a SMAS or deep plane technique.”

According to Dr. McCafferty, expert surgeons will always adapt their techniques to best fit the patient’s needs.

“When a patient has a lot of sun damage and deep wrinkling, the deep plane would be addressed, but re-draping the skin is what’s most critical. Think of it like fluffing a bedspread, where we separate it from the underlying layer and then re-drape it so that it’s smooth,” Dr. McCafferty says. “On the other hand, someone who has lost a lot of facial volume but has no real wrinkling would require a completely different approach.”

No Magic Bullet

“There have been multiple studies since the advent of the deep plane facelift in the 70s that compare different facelift techniques, objectively trying to determine if one is better than the other,” Dr. McCafferty explains. “And there has never been a paper published that has proved one is better than another.”

With no magic bullet, board-certified plastic surgeons have to address each patient individually to produce the best results.

“It can be helpful to get more than one opinion,” Dr. McCafferty notes. “And to expand your view from just surgical solutions to include all the different ways we can approach facial rejuvenation in this day and age, including skin care.”

Approaching your rejuvenation from multiple angles with customization at the heart of you and your practitioner’s plan can also help you protect your facelift investment.

“We have a lot of effective ways to enhance skin before and after surgery, which is not something we had access to twenty years ago,” Dr. McCafferty explains. “These days we have so many tools at our disposal, and a facelift is just one of them.”