Important note as of 27 October 2022:

At this time, Medical Departures is no longer facilitating medical bookings in the Metro Manila area or anywhere else in the Philippines. 

To find and schedule a free appointment with a board-registered surgeon elsewhere in Asia, please browse our network of trusted, verified face lift providers in Thailand or South Korea—as well as dozens of other destinations to choose from in our main global guide.

Ultimate Guide to Face Lifts - Global Guide
 

Ultimate Guide to Face Lifts in Thailand

Ultimate Guide to Face Lifts in South Korea

Alternatively, see some of our popular medical destination guides below—containing travel tips, price comparisons, before & after photos, reviews, and recommended clinics for other types of plastic surgery, dermatology, hair transplantation, orthopedics, fertility and anti-aging treatments:

Ultimate Guide to Doctors in Thailand

Ultimate Guide to Doctors in Bali (Indonesia)

Ultimate Guide to Doctors in South Korea

Full List of Clinics and Hospitals in Singapore

We thank you for your continued support and wish you all the best in good health and safe travels.

For your reference:

You may be a good candidate for this facial surgery if:

You are in good overall health

You have realistic expectations in terms of the kind of results you will see

You have sagging skin in the mid-face area, jaw, chin and neck.

Manila has become a popular destination for facelifts because of its highly-trained surgeons, professional medical practitioners, and state-of-the-art medical facilities. Since many of the surgeons here have studied or practiced in the US or Europe, English is spoken fluently. Hospitals and other facilities are often affiliated with international organizations (like ISO), that set internally-recognized hygiene and safety protocols.

If you’ve checked the prices at home, you’ve noticed that a facelift procedure can cost as much as a brand new car. Facelifts in Manila cost between 50%-70% less than in the US, Australia, UK and European countries. Even when factoring in airfare and accommodation expenses you are still likely to save thousands. Since you’ll already be there, you might even fit in a mini-vacation to experience the beautiful beaches and rich mélange of Malay, Spanish and American culture. Talk with your doctor to figure out when you can fit in your cultural tour prior to your facelift procedure.

The average cost of Facelift in Manila is around AUD $26,000 (NZ $29,024, UK £13,606, EUR €17,364, CAN $23,977, USD $18,000). You can find incredible savings of about 80% compared to the cost of having the treatment at home, which is $6,561 in Australia. (NZ $7,324, UK £3,434, EUR €4,381, CAN $6,527, USD $4,600).

[Please note: these prices are approximate estimates based on international data, calculated at the time of writing.]

For surgery like this, it’s always advisable to do the same research on providers in Manila as you would at home. Check prospective surgeons’ education, certifications, qualifications, professional memberships and portfolios. You’ll want to check as many before & after photos as you can find, as well as reading reviews. 

Medical Departures understands how important this research process is. To assist you, we conduct our own quality checks to ensure we work with providers who are qualified, educated at top schools, have professional association memberships, and have received positive reviews from past patients. We even carry out criminal and legal checks—an extra step to provide that much-needed peace of mind. 

Facelift surgery is performed under general anesthesia. Procedures can focus on different regions of your face, depending on your personal aesthetic goals. The surgeon will make incisions, separate face and neck skin from the underlying tissue, reposition muscle, fat and other connective tissue, and add facial implants if they are needed to provide structure. Once the facial structures are sculpted, the facial skin is redraped, and the incisions are closed.

Facelift surgery normally takes about four hours, although you stay at your facility for several hours post-op, if not overnight.  

You can read more about facelifts at the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery.

Techniques

Your surgeon will choose the best technique based on your desired outcome. Some of the techniques that might be discussed are:

• Traditional facelift—uses incisions starting at the temples and running around the front of the ear, and along the lower hairline.

• Limited-incision facelift—uses incisions on temples, in front of ears, and sometimes lower eyelid and upper lip.

• Neck lift—uses an incision that starts in front of the ear, wraps under it, and ends on the lower scalp. A neck lift can lift and tighten sagging neck skin, as well as tighten jowls.

Right after the surgery, you’ll wear a compression garment, and have to rest and sleep with your head elevated. No driving for the first week.

You can return to work and slowly resume daily activities, after about two weeks. Bruising will start to fade in about that time, as well. You should avoid sun exposure for several months after the surgery.

No swimming or strenuous activity for the first month, and no makeup until you are told it is OK.

Your facelift should be fully healed in about six to eight months.

Sources:

International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. Website accessed: 18 February 2020. https://www.isaps.org/

Neck Lift Contouring Guide. American Board of Cosmetic Surgery. Website accessed: 18 February 2020. https://www.americanboardcosmeticsurgery.org/procedure-learning-center/face/neck-contouring-guide/

Herndon, Jaime, MS, MPH, MFA. Facelift: Everything You Need to Know. Healthline. 13 December 2018. https://www.healthline.com/health/face-lift

Carpenter, William. Philippines: A Friendly Country for English Speakers. Investopedia. 19 August 2019. https://www.investopedia.com/articles/personal-finance/012516/philippines-friendly-country-english-speakers.asp

Escalona, Katrina. The 21 Most Beautiful Islands in the Philippines. The Culture Trip. 9 August 2018. https://theculturetrip.com/asia/philippines/articles/the-21-most-beautiful-islands-in-the-philippines/

International Organization for Standardization. Website accessed: 18 February 2020.https://www.iso.org/home.html

(Image by: Alvin js5)