Surgery · Facelift Results

Facelift Before and After

What a pair of photographs can and cannot tell you

Gangnam, Seoul | Board-certified plastic surgeon, Dr. Jonghwan Choi
Rewind's own cases only · KHIDI-registered for overseas patients

Facelift Before and After Facelift Before and After Facelift Before and After Facelift Before and After 
Results

Reading a facelift result

What do facelift before and after photos really show?

The short answer

A facelift photograph shows one moment in a healing process. An early picture still carries the swelling and the tight, heavy look that Rewind records after its full lift, because the dissection beneath the skin and the SMAS is wide. A later picture shows the face once swelling has gone, the restrictions have ended and the scar has begun to mature. The later the photograph, the closer it is to the settled result, and the more ordinary ageing has continued on top of it.

Rewind has not yet released facelift case photographs for its international site. The frames on this page are therefore empty, and they will hold only Rewind's own patients once the clinic publishes them.

Recovery details on this page come from Rewind's Korean surgical page for full facial lifting and its post-operative instructions. The clinic does not publish a month-by-month settling schedule, so this page does not invent one. The long-term patient figures quoted below come from a published survey and do not describe Rewind's patients.

Before and after galleries are the most persuasive and the least standardised material in aesthetic surgery. Lighting, head angle, expression, make-up and hair all change how a jaw line reads, and a pair taken on different days under different light can suggest a change that the surgery did not make.

For that reason this page explains what to look for in a facelift pair before showing any. When Rewind's own photographs are added, they can be read with the same checklist.

Dr. Jonghwan Choi talking through facelift expectations with a patient at Rewind
Fig. 01 · Expected change is discussed against your own face, at the desk
Cases

Before & After

Where Rewind's own facelift cases will appear

Stock images or borrowed cases would show nothing about the operation performed here, so none are used. Each frame below is reserved for a Rewind facelift patient, with a caption naming every operation performed in that session.

Facelift: frames reserved for Rewind patients

BEFORE PHOTO
AFTER PHOTO
BEFOREAFTER
frame 01
Full SMAS facelift, front and oblique views
Reserved for a Rewind facelift patient. Individual results may vary.
BEFORE PHOTO
AFTER PHOTO
BEFOREAFTER
frame 02
Facelift combined with neck lift, profile view
Reserved for a Rewind facelift patient. Individual results may vary.
BEFORE PHOTO
AFTER PHOTO
BEFOREAFTER
frame 03
One patient photographed early and again once settled
Reserved for a Rewind facelift patient. Individual results may vary.

When pairs are published, each will name every procedure carried out in the same session, because a neck lift or other work alongside the facelift changes what the photograph shows. Facelift surgery can bring bleeding, haematoma, infection, asymmetry, numbness, prolonged swelling, facial nerve injury and scarring. One person's photographs record their own anatomy and healing, and their result cannot be promised to anyone else.

Check

Four checks

Four things to check in any facelift before and after pair

A fair facelift pair lets you compare like with like. These four checks separate a change made by surgery from a change made by the camera.

check 01
Same light, same angle
A 1999 paper on standardised facial photography showed how lighting direction and head position alter how contours appear. Both frames should match on both.
check 02
The jaw line and jowl
The clearest facelift change is along the jaw. Compare the jowl at rest, with the head level, since a lowered chin hides it.
check 03
Folds beside the nose
The fold from nose to mouth softens when the cheek is moved, but it rarely vanishes. A pair showing no fold at all deserves a closer look.
check 04
Ear and hairline
The incision runs through the temple hairline and around the ear. A fair after photograph shows this area with the hair pulled back.

If the neck was operated on at the same time, a profile view is the one to study, and the caption should say that a neck lift was part of the plan.

Time

Early and settled

How a facelift result changes from the first review to the settled face

Rewind publishes what happens in the first week and the first month after its full lift. Beyond that the clinic gives a long-term durability figure; the stages in between are described here without invented dates.

01Dressing

The first week, under compression

About a week in a compression dressing. Any photograph now shows swelling and tightness from the wide dissection, which is expected.

02Easing

The following weeks

Pain and swelling improve gradually and daily life returns step by step. A photograph in this period still flatters and distorts the contour.

03Restrictions end

After at least four weeks

Strenuous exercise, sauna and steam rooms are avoided for at least four weeks. Swelling continues to fade after this, at a pace that varies between people.

04Scar

While the line matures

The incision line along the hairline and ear is protected from the sun as it matures, so that it does not darken.

05Years

The long view

Rewind records more than ten years of durability for its full lift, with variation between individuals. Ageing continues throughout, so a ten-year photograph shows both the lift and time.

Dr. Jonghwan Choi operating with loupes and a headlight
Fig. 02 · What a photograph records was decided here, layer by layer
Rewind

Why the frames are empty

Why this facelift page waits for Rewind's own photographs

A before and after pair is evidence about a particular surgeon and a particular operation. Borrowed images would be evidence about neither, so the gallery stays empty until the clinic's own cases are released.

01Source

Only Rewind patients, photographed at Rewind

The frames are reserved for patients operated on by Dr. Jonghwan Choi. No stock image or borrowed case is placed in them.

02Caption

Every procedure in the session named

A facelift combined with a neck lift will be labelled as such, so a profile change is never attributed to the wrong operation.

03Consent

Published only with permission

Case photographs identify real people. They appear only where the patient has agreed to publication, which is part of why a gallery takes time to build.

Dr. Jonghwan Choi examining the jaw line of a patient at the consultation desk
Fig. 03 · Your own face is the only reliable before photograph
Clinic

Where results are reviewed

Where facelift patients at Rewind are operated on and reviewed

Operating room at Rewind Plastic Surgery, Apgujeong

Fig. 04 · The operating room, Richro Building

Clinic interior at Rewind Plastic Surgery, Apgujeong

Fig. 05 &The clinic floor in Apgujeong

Operations and reviews take place on the Richro Building's fourth and fifth floors in Apgujeong, Gangnam, Seoul. The surgeon who operates is the one who reviews the healing face, so the person comparing your early and later appearance is the person who planned the lift. Consultations run by appointment on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday until 19:00, and on Saturday until 16:00.

Incision: temple, around the ear, behind-ear hairline
SMAS raised, drawn taut and fixed
Compression dressing for about one week
At least four weeks without sauna or hard exercise
Durability recorded: more than ten years, varying
Operated by Dr. Jonghwan Choi
Dr. Jonghwan Choi, board-certified plastic surgeon

Board-certified plastic surgeon

Every facelift at Rewind is performed and reviewed by Dr. Jonghwan Choi, who is certified in Korea as a specialist in Plastic Surgery. The clinic treats overseas patients under KHIDI registration Reg. M-2025-01-08-09288.

Cost

Pricing

What the facelift in a published pair would be priced at

A caption naming the operations is also a guide to the fee. These are the listings a facelift pair at Rewind would fall under.

Full facelift, SMAS layerComplete incision route with the fascia lifted and fixed
₩9,000,000
Facelift combined with neck liftThe line to look for when a profile pair shows a new neck angle
₩14,000,000

VAT is charged on top of both figures; the anaesthetic fee is already part of them. Which one would apply to your face is confirmed after examination.

A result that includes the neck belongs to the combined listing of ₩14,000,000, and a face-only result to the full lift at ₩9,000,000.

Fit

Your own result

What a published facelift pair can predict for your own face

A pair is a useful guide when

  • The patient had descent across the face similar to yours
  • The photographs match in light, angle and expression
  • The caption names every operation from the session
  • The after photograph was taken once swelling had settled

A pair tells you little when

  • Only one area was treated, or the neck was operated on and you do not need it
  • The after photograph is from the first weeks, while swelling persists
  • Make-up, hair or head position differ between the frames
  • Your skin, tissue weight or medical history differ markedly from the patient shown
After

Looking ahead

How long a facelift result shows, and what patients report

Long-term follow-up of facelift patients is rare. One survey of patients who had a SMAS and platysma facelift, contacted an average of 12.6 years later, gives a sense of how people judge their own result over time, and its limits are part of the lesson.

One year
Early view
In that survey, 97.8 percent recalled their improvement one year after surgery as very good or beyond expectations, a recollection the authors note may carry recall bias.
12.6 years
Long view
At follow-up, 68.5 percent still rated their improvement as very good or beyond expectations.
Younger
Self-rated
The same share, 68.5 percent, felt the facelift had added ten or more years to their youthful appearance.
Mixed
Disappointment
Thirty-one percent reported disappointment with some aspect of the facelift, a reminder that satisfaction is rarely complete.

These figures come from one published survey of one surgeon's patients and do not describe outcomes at Rewind. Rewind does not state how many years younger its patients look; any such number would vary too much between individuals to promise. Individual results may vary.

Doctor

Professional

At Rewind, one board-certified plastic surgeon carries every case — from the first consultation to the final follow-up. Because a face is a story, and a story deserves a single author.

Dr. Jonghwan Choi, board-certified plastic surgeonRewind,
Dr. Jonghwan Choi presenting at an academic session
Fig. 06 — Academic presentation, thread-lifting session

Rewind's Doctor

Dr. Jonghwan Choi Medical Director

One surgeon, from the first
consultation to the last follow-up.

A board-certified plastic surgeon devoted to anti-aging lifting — with the precision and restraint built through years of craniofacial practice.

Board-certified plastic surgeon (Plastic Surgery)
10 peer-reviewed publications
Medical Director, Rewind Plastic Surgery
Korean Society of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgeons
Former chief director, Apgujeong Y&T Plastic Surgery
Korean Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery
J Craniofac Surg · JKMS · Arch Craniofac Surg
Korean Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association
Voices

Google Reviews

What our patients say.

G 5.0 ★★★★★ 12 Google reviews · Rewind Plastic Surgery, Apgujeong — live-synced from Google Business Profile

"Sample review card — at launch this section pulls the clinic's real Google reviews automatically, shown verbatim with the reviewer's initial and posting date."

AReviewer namePOSTED ON GOOGLE

"Sample review card — reviews are never written or edited by the clinic; only what patients posted on Google appears here."

BReviewer namePOSTED ON GOOGLE

"Sample review card — a 'See all reviews on Google' link takes visitors to the clinic's Business Profile."

CReviewer namePOSTED ON GOOGLE
Ask

Questions

Facelift before and after: questions about results

What do facelift photos show at three months compared with one year?
Rewind does not publish a month-by-month schedule, so no fixed difference is claimed here. In general, an earlier photograph can still carry residual swelling and a scar that is maturing, while a one-year photograph is closer to the settled result. The pace varies between individuals.
How much younger does a facelift typically make someone look?
There is no reliable single figure. In one long-term survey of facelift patients, 68.5 percent felt ten or more years had been added to their youthful appearance, a self-rating from one surgeon's patients. Rewind does not promise a number of years.
When will Rewind's own facelift results be published here?
The clinic has not yet released facelift case photographs for its international site. The frames are reserved for Rewind's own patients, published with their consent, and no stock images or borrowed cases are used in the meantime.
How can I tell whether a facelift before and after pair is fair?
Check that light, head angle and expression match, that hair is pulled back to show the ear and temple, and that the caption lists every procedure performed. Standardised photography reduces the changes a camera can create on its own.
Where does the incision line show up in a facelift photograph?
Rewind's incision runs from the temple hairline around the ear into the hairline behind it, where hair and the ear contour conceal it once healed. Close views can still show a fine line, especially early on, so sun protection and scar care matter.
Does a facelift result keep changing after the first year?
The lift itself is recorded by Rewind as lasting more than ten years, with individual variation. Ageing continues throughout, so the face goes on changing slowly. A later photograph shows the lifted structure and the years that have passed since.
Can Rewind review my photographs before I travel?
Photographs sent in advance let the team explain whether a full lift, a combined lift with the neck or a smaller operation looks likely. The final plan and what change to expect are given only after Dr. Jonghwan Choi examines you in person.
Do results look different when a neck lift is added?
Yes, mainly in profile. A facelift alone works on the cheek and jaw line; adding a neck lift addresses loose skin and the platysma below the jaw. A pair including neck surgery should say so, since the neck angle is often the most visible change.
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Scientific evidence

Published research on facelift outcomes and facial photography

These papers look at how facelift results are judged: long-term satisfaction reported by patients, the standards that make facial photographs comparable, and a pooled review of satisfaction and complications across facelift techniques. None of them studies patients at this clinic, and none can predict how an individual face will change.