Meet Plastic Surgeon Dr. Christian Drehsen

Board Certified

Dr. Christian Drehsen has been practicing in the Tampa Bay area for over 20 years, and is one of Florida's most renowned and respected surgeons. Certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, Dr. Drehsen has an impeccable eye for beauty and keen sense of balance and symmetry. Dr. Drehsen has dedicated himself to the specialized field of cosmetic surgery, and become one of Florida's leading cosmetic surgeons. After performing hundreds of facial procedures, he has developed his own techniques of facial rejuvenation, along with a wide range of other procedures, that produce more subtle and natural results. Dr. Drehsen has appeared on several local and national television and radio programs and has also written a number of nationally published medical articles.

Born in Belgium, after Dr. Drehsen received his Bachelor of Science, he attended medical school at the University of Brussels in Belgium. Upon completion of his Doctorate of Medicine, he came to the United States where he followed a comprehensive medical training program in all fields of plastic surgery at the University of Louisville (Louisville, Kentucky) under the direction of Dr. Leonard Weiner, Professor of Plastic Surgery. Dr. Drehsen also became a specialist in hand surgery through rotations under the renowned hand surgeon, Dr. Harold Kleinert, and was fully trained in microsurgery under the direction of Dr. Robert Ackland, Associate Professor of Surgery and pioneer in the field of microsurgery, at the University of Louisville. During his residency at Morton Children's Hospital in Louisville, Dr. Drehsen kept close contact with the burn unit and developed strong pediatric plastic surgery skills as well.

Over the years, Dr. Drehsen has strived to combine his broad surgical experience and his unique aesthetic approach to the field of cosmetic surgery to give his patients their ultimate dream of beauty. His greatest interest has been in the development of a subtle and natural technique of facial rejuvenation, which he refers to as the "Refresher Lift" that combines the most advanced method of face lifting to obtain a natural, refreshed look after surgery. Dr. Drehsen also performs a broad range of other procedures.

Articles

Is the Refresher Lift (RF) different from the Macs Lift? By Christian G Drehsen M.D.

The Refresher Lift is quite different in its reach and adaptability.

The name Refresher Lift was actually coined by my patients who told me how "refreshed" they felt after surgery. I started using the name in the 1990's because it was a lot easier was a lot easier to describe its effect than to explain the procedure using medical jargon that only a plastic surgeon would understand. Below, I will explain the procedure with a caveat to non board certified plastic surgeons: The Refresher Lift has proven to be safe, effective, and long lasting with reasonable recovery times. It is well within the capabilities of trained board certified plastic surgeons, but it is NOT for weekend trained amateurs.

Several important goals are accomplished with the Refresher Lift. Refreshing requires more than a simple tightening; a natural looking rejuvenation cannot be achieved without the restoration of a youthful cheek contour, the filling of suborbital hollows, the elimination of jowls, and redefining the submandibular trough . The Refresher Lift produces a strong vertical uplift achieving restoration of the malar fullness and filling of the suborbital hollow. It is not a mini lift since the lengths of the incisions vary according to the specific requirements demanded by the patients' needs.

The mechanism creating the strong vertical uplift is based on an obliquely directed (lateral canthus to base of earlobe) inverted C, elliptically shaped smasectomy, starting with a pie shaped excision of the lateral periorbital orbicularis and finishing with a similar excisional wedge of the superolateral platysma in the sub-tragal area. The strong quasi vertical uplift of the malar pad is achieved with a near/far slipped auto-locking knot running suture. Prior to this step, a gathering auto-locking purse string suture is used to elevate the superolateral platysma and the lower smas in a fanlike fashion, and secure them to the rigid pretragal smas (this suture may extend in the neck when needed, toward the supraglottic area tightening the mid platysma).

In some cases, when a substantial superolateral malar uplift is needed, and only a minimal fat pad laxity is present, a subperiosteal malar undermining accompanied by a strong transfixing suspension suture anchored to the temporal fascia is added to the smasectomy.

Closure of the orbicularis resection consistently improves lower lid posture. The small lateral canthal dog ear created by the vertical uplift is reduced by syringe liposuction of the subcutaneous malar pad. Squinting lines are reduced by a punch avulsion of the lateral periorbital orbicularis. Enhancement of the medial sub orbital fill hollow is achieved at the end of the procedure with 4 to 5 cc micro fat grafting placed below orbital rim and under the periorbital orbicularis.

A receding hairline belies all rejuvenating efforts. The Refresher Lift maintains a youthful temporal hairline because the hairs are never displaced behind or above the superior ear sulcus. This is achieved by using a sharply beveled, wavy, intra, or retro trichial incision, designed to minimize the displacement of the temporal hairline or sideburns. The post -tragal incision is refined by a one sided Z-plasty.

When no significant redraping or no anteroposterior neck tightening is needed, the post auricular sulcus absorbs the dog ear resulting from the superolateral cheek skin transfer. When a more substantial lateral neck skin redraping is needed, a beveled, wavy intra and/or retro trichial incision is designed following obliquely, the nape of the neck.

The most common ancillary procedures performed in conjunction with the Refresher Lift or Stemcell Refresher Lift are intraconjunctival lower blepharoplasties with a 35% TCA peel, corset platysmaraphy to correct prominent band, pre or sub platysmal fat excision, and repair the platysmal sling with a strong slipped knot, auto locking suture. Our dual plane brow lift is commonly performed to restore an elegant and dynamic framing of the eyes.

This brief description of the Refresher Lift cannot possibly incorporate the dozens of small yet meaningful refinements that I have incorporated in this procedure over the years. If you are a board certified plastic surgeon and wish to learn this procedure in detail, please contact our practice at 800-942-1606 and we can make some arrangements for you to visit us and learn the details of this procedure.

For a personal and confidential consultation with one of our Board Certified Plastic Surgeons, call the Clinique of Plastic Surgery at 800-942-1606 to schedule your appointment today!

As with any medical procedure, there are certain inherent risks that should be discussed. Costs vary depending upon the extent of the surgery and areas treated.