It has long been understood that women who undergo facial rejuvenation surgery experience benefits in the way that they are perceived by others. And now a recent study has shown that men are also perceived to be more likeable – as well as more attractive – after undergoing various facial rejuvenation procedures.

How did the study work?

The study, which was carried out by a team of plastic surgeons at the Georgetown University Medical Center, in the United States, looked at 24 different men who had undergone one or more of the following procedures: facelift, brow lift, neck lift, upper blepharoplasty (upper eyelid lift), lower blepharoplasty (lower eyelid lift), rhinoplasty (nose reshaping), or chin implants.

All participants were patients of one of two plastic surgeons and had paid for their own surgery. They consented to have their pre- and post-procedure photographs used for the purposes of the study.

The surgeons then put together six different surveys, each containing eight photographs, four ‘before’ and four ‘after’ – although they were not labelled as such and no one survey contained two photos of the same individual.

The surveys were then sent to 150 participants, who were not told the purpose of the study. These people were asked to rate the personality traits (aggressiveness, trustworthiness etc) of the subject of each photograph, as well as their attractiveness and masculinity.

The results

Once the responses of the survey had been collated, it was clear that facial rejuvenation procedures overall were associated with attractiveness, trustworthiness, likeability and better social skills.

And specific procedures seemed to be linked to certain traits; for example, brow lifts increased the patient’s perceived extroversion and willingness to take risks, whilst upper blepharoplasty made them appear more trustworthy, and lower blepharoplasty less likely to take risks.

Male and female facial rejuvenation procedures – what’s the difference?

There is a wide variety of different facial rejuvenation procedures available today, and what works best for you will depend not only on your individual facial characteristics, but also to a large extent on your gender and there will be certain differences which your cosmetic surgeon will take into account when planning your procedure.

Anatomy

There’s no getting away from the fact that men and women are built differently. While women tend to be fine boned, with weaker ligament and skeletal structures in the face, men often have larger features and thicker skin.

This makes men’s facial surgery a slightly trickier prospect, as surgical manipulation of the facial structures is not so easy. Men’s skin also has a lot more blood vessels in it, which can lead to a higher risk of excess bleeding during surgery, or scarring afterwards.

Aesthetics

Where women often seek softer, more delicate features from facial surgery, the ideal in men tends towards producing stronger lines, particularly around the chin and jaw.

In a male facelift, therefore, the emphasis is often on tightening the skin around the jawline, whilst women are frequently looking for more of an overall softening of the face, with volume added around the cheekbone area.

Whilst these are broad ideals, specific surgery choices will of course depend on the individual. During your consultation with Mr Juling Ong, he will discuss in full what you are hoping to achieve from surgery and he will take into account your unique facial characteristics while carefully planning your procedure. Call 020 7927 6528 to arrange a male facelift consultation with Mr Ong.