Percutaneous Thread Lift Facial Rejuvenation: Literature Review and Evidence-Based Analysis.

[PURPOSE] Interest in noninvasive facial rejuvenation procedures continues to grow. With the advent of the so-called lunch-time face-lift, suture suspension facial rejuvenation has gained prominence and much popularity largely patient driven rather than data driven. We have published a decade ago a review about this rejuvenation technique. Despite its popularity at that time, serious long-term studies and peer-reviewed data about longevity and patient satisfaction were lacking to our surprise. As 10 years have passed, we have conducted a new systematic PubMed database search limited to the last 10 years interval.

[METHODS] The search identified 192 publications. After screening the titles and abstracts, 20 clinical and 2 experimental studies met the inclusion criteria and were selected for this review.

[RESULTS] Though thread lift facial rejuvenation is considered to be a promising modality, no new evidence has been added to the literature to support its use.

[CONCLUSION] Until evidence-based efficacy and robust data are objectively documented, patients requesting percutaneous facial rejuvenation must be well informed about adverse events, longevity of effect, and limited available data on efficacy.

[LEVEL OF EVIDENCE III] This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266 .