Hello. I had cheekbone reduction surgery via a scalp incision. When people talk about cheekbone reduction, it is usually done by cutting the cheekbone from inside the mouth and fixing it in place, but scalp-incision cheekbone reduction means making a zigzag incision along the hairline side, exposing the cheekbone, and then performing the surgery. I think many people may not have heard of it, but as far as I know, scalp-incision surgery was quite popular until about 10 years ago because it was said to be a method that did not cause cheek sagging. The protruding side cheekbones were stressful for me, but what scared me most was side effects like cheek sagging, so I could not even dream of surgery. Then I heard that scalp-incision surgery could prevent cheek sagging and even make you look younger, so I decided to go ahead with it.
I had surgery last November, so it has now been 6 months. As far as I know, the scalp-incision method is used not only for cheekbones but also in facelifts, and it seems especially common among middle-aged people. If there are people considering surgery using a scalp incision, I hope my review helps, and I want to share what may be useful from my experience no matter which surgical method you choose. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ <<Until surgery>> I learned about the scalp-incision method while searching YouTube for cheekbone surgery cheek sagging. I was drawn in by the claim that if you have surgery through an incision inside the mouth, cheek sagging will definitely happen, while if you have surgery through a scalp incision, cheek sagging can be prevented and patients are said to hear from people around them even 10 years later that they look younger. So I went to make a surgery reservation, and I think I ended up waiting more than 2 hours just for the appointment. When I said I came after watching YouTube, they said the explanation was all on YouTube, so they did not do a consultation about the surgery itself, only about the surgical area, so the consultation time itself was short. I was only thinking about the cheekbones, but they also recommended advancing the chin. So I reserved surgery for the cheekbones only first, said I would think again about the receding chin, and the consultation ended.
(What felt off) The consultation wait was long because there was a patient already in surgery. The consultation room and the operating room were arranged so that they could see each other. While I was being consulted, the patient in the operating room was still lying there, and the doctor came into the consultation room taking off bloodstained gloves. I wondered, are they doing consultations in the middle of surgery? Is this really okay?? But I still made the surgery reservation because I trusted the scalp-incision method. And when I asked about the incision scar during the consultation, they only said, "It depends on the person," and did not give a clear explanation such as that some amount may remain. I did not even see photos or anything like that. They only said that scars may sometimes cause patchy hair loss, but that part can be fixed by re-suturing, so it is not a big problem, and that even short-haired soldiers undergo this surgery, so I thought scars would not be an issue. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ <<On the day of surgery>> I decided not to proceed with the recommended chin advancement surgery and to have only the cheekbones operated on. Then I went to the hospital in the morning. I filled out the consent form before surgery and then had the operation. I have no memory at all after anesthesia, and only after I woke up and felt the bandages wrapped around my head did I realize I had undergone surgery. The swelling and pain were not severe on the day itself. If I remember correctly, I had surgery around 10 or 11 in the morning and woke up around 5, and I went home around 9. I took the train home wearing a hoodie, and the bandages wrapped around my head could not be fully hidden by the hoodie, so I felt mortified beyond words. (You really should think twice about public transportation when having surgery.)
(What felt off) When filling out the surgical consent form, you check the possibility of surgery-related complications. The items I checked were: "asymmetry, insufficient cosmetic or functional improvement, excessive scarring, skin necrosis, infection, inflammation, hematoma, nerve injury, scalp-incision scar alopecia, observe for 3 to 6 months during the recovery process" Excessive scarring... At that time, I asked how much scarring there would be, and they said, "It depends on the person. You have to do it to know."?? So when I hesitated, they said, "If a man has made up his mind, he should go through with it~" Since I already thought the scarring would not be a major problem, I checked it anyway despite the phrase "excessive scarring." Before surgery, they tied my hair with rubber bands for the scalp incision while I was chewing gum, and even at that moment I suddenly thought, are they really taking my surgery seriously? That made me uneasy. Still, I thought there would be no major issue because the doctor was experienced, so I lay down on the operating table, and the doctor came in wearing surgical clothes. But the surgical clothes... They were heavily stained. It looked like there was blood on them... In any case, I got the feeling they were not hygienic. Then I had the surgery, and after waking from anesthesia I met the doctor. I asked, "Did the surgery go well?" and the doctor said, "I dunno lol" At that moment my anxiety grew much stronger. But then they asked me whether they could upload photos to YouTube, and although I said they could not upload photos, inside I reassured myself, thinking, "Ah, they are asking because the surgery went well and they are wondering whether they can post photos." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ <<After surgery to one month>> On the day of surgery, it was bearable, but after that day it really hurt as if I were going to die. My face swelled, and setting aside the pain from swelling, my eyes hurt terribly. You can think of it as being unable to open your eyes at all. I had to keep applying ice or ice packs around my eyes, and from the fourth day onward the pain improved a lot. When lying down, I also had to sleep with my body raised by 20 to 30 degrees. It would be good to prepare an adjustable bed or something like that. At one week, they removed the stitches on my head; at that time, only the staples were taken out. One week later, they removed the rest of the stitches completely. In my case, inflammation developed on the left side of my head, so the treatment period became a bit longer. I had to go to the hospital for injections, and because I live in the countryside and the round-trip transportation cost alone was 80,000 won, and it also took a long time, I went once or twice a week for a month. Usually, it seems like things end once the stitches are removed within two weeks, but I think you need to keep in mind that treatment can take longer, as it did for me. If you took vacation for cosmetic surgery and then have to keep going in for treatment, that would be inconvenient. After the surgery, blood also pooled on the top of my head to the point that it was sloshing around. I said it was sloshing, and I thought they would drain it, but they seemed to just leave it, saying it would be absorbed. The area where the blood pooled hardened and became firm, and when touched it bulges out abnormally thick. It has gotten smaller, but it still bulges now... (It seems like absorption takes several months.) They said this was a surgery with no bleeding, so no drainage tube would be needed, but what I experienced was a bit different. Sensation in the left side of my head has mostly returned, but the side where the blood pooled on the right still feels strange. For up to a month, your face is swollen and it looks like you had cosmetic surgery. It seems like it starts to become much less noticeable from the second month. And hair falls out straight along the incision line. Zigzag, about a finger’s width... At that time, they said the hair would grow back, so I did not worry too much and just covered it up with a hat as much as possible.
(What felt off) This was when the first stitches were removed. When I asked, "My hair is falling out, but it will all grow back, right?" the doctor said he would never say that all of a person’s hair would definitely grow back 100 percent.. From that point on I started worrying. But when I asked at the second stitch removal, "You said 100 percent of the hair would not grow back, so about what percentage comes back?" the doctor snapped, "Who on earth says that 100 percent of the hair does not grow back?" and asked if something had been posted on the internet. My mind went into a state of "??????????" and when I said that the doctor himself had said that at the first stitch removal, he just brushed it off and changed the subject, which I found very baffling. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The post has become long, so for now I am posting the review up to one month, and later I plan to post the review up to 6 months as well as what I discussed with the hospital in April about my complaints. As I said at the beginning, I understand that the scalp-incision method is used for cheekbones and facelifts, and I hope my review helps anyone deciding whether to have surgery. As for scars and hair loss, up to one month is a period when temporary hair loss can occur, so I did not mention it much in this review, but I will also talk about that in the review up to 6 months.
The reason I organized the "What felt off" section separately is so it can serve as a reference when deciding whether to have surgery. In my case, there were many moments that felt off, but I ignored them all because I trusted the surgery, and now I am struggling with depression. When deciding on surgery, stop thinking only the way you want to believe. If there is a moment when something feels off, look for the reason behind that feeling. And on the day of surgery, when filling out the consent form, please do not casually check the agreement boxes with thoughts like "What could happen?" just because of the deposit or the time already spent. As much as possible, demand explanations about possible side effects during the pre-surgery consultation, and if there are unexpected side effects listed in the consent form, firmly ask whether the wording can be revised. If they say it cannot be revised, ask for a detailed explanation and discuss how they would take responsibility if a problem occurs. If there is a part that simply cannot be compromised on, please consider canceling on the day of surgery. Surgery is a contract. It is not wrong to refuse to proceed with surgery if there are items in the consent form you cannot agree to.
I want to make clear that the review I am posting is written from my own experience and thoughts for the purpose of sharing information. There are not many review posts about scalp-incision cheekbone surgery. I will write again later, but I am living with worry and depression because of symptoms that seem like cheek sagging (Indian lines, the nasolabial area becoming thicker) and because of scar and hair loss at the incision site. If there are any people who had surgery with a scalp incision, I would appreciate it if you could contact me through the comments or a private message! Even if a lot of time has passed since your surgery, that is fine, so please contact me for the sake of sharing your experience. Thank you all for reading this long post.