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Neck sling “beats signs of ageing”

BBC News

November 18, 2003

 
The survey follows operations on 100 people

Plastic surgeons believe they may have found a better way to beat that most irrepressible sign of early ageing - the saggy neck.

Doctors in the United States have developed a plastic "sling", which is implanted under the skin to lift tissue under the chin.

The implant has already been used on 88 women and 12 men.

A survey in the journal Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery found 90% were very happy with the results.

Sagging skin

The face and neck are among the first parts of the body to show signs of ageing. Wrinkles are often followed by sagging.

This happens when the skin loses some of its elasticity and fat gathers around the neck.

Plastic surgeons currently use facelifts or liposuction to try to tackle these signs of ageing.

However, doctors at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta say they may have found a more effective way to reverse sagging.

They have created an artificial plastic sling, which is implanted under the skin and stretches under the chin from one earlobe to the other.

The permanent sling helps to keep the tissue and neck in place and prevent sagging, say the doctors.

They carried out a survey of the 99 of the 100 patients 12 months after they underwent the procedure.

Nine out of 10 said it had met or exceeded their expectations. Just eight of the 99 patients said it had not met their expectations.

None of the patients said they had experienced any discomfort in the 12 months following the operation.

Most patients said they would recommend the procedure to their friends.

"Eighty six patients claimed that they would recommend the procedure to a friend or relative," said Dr Wallace Dyer, one of those involved in the study.

A growing number of Britons are choosing to go under the knife to help them to stay young.