June 30, 2021 – For most patients, the reason for undergoing a facelift is to "turn back time" and look younger and more attractive. According to statistics from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, facelifts were performed on more than 234,000 people even during the 2020 pandemic.Patients may wonder if they will look younger after undergoing a facelift. That is a hard question for plastic surgeons to answer. The cosmetic results of facelifting are usually judged on a case by case basis or using subjective ratings.Research now suggests an objective way to assess the apparent age reduction after facelift surgery. This is artificial intelligence (AI), which uses facial photos to calculate age. Senior author James P. Bradley MD, Vice Chair of Surgery, Zucker School of Medicine, Hofstra/Northwell, comments, "Our study showed that AI algorithms are capable of recognising the success of facelifting and even put a number to the reduction in years of perceived aging." The July issue of Plastic and Reconstructive surgery, the official medical journal for the ASPS, published the study.A type of AI algorithm called convolutional neuronets was used in the study. Dr. Bradley explained that neural networks can be trained on millions of public images to learn how to recognize facial features.For 50 patients who had undergone facelifting, four different, publicly accessible neural networks were used for objective age estimations. These AI estimates were based on standard photos taken at least one year before and after the facelift. These results were compared to patients' subjective evaluations of their appearance and responses to a FACE-Q questionnaire.All the patients were women with an average age of 58.7. The study used AI algorithms that were 100% accurate in identifying patients' ages based on photos taken "before".The "after" photos show that the neural networks detected a 4.3-year age reduction after facelift surgery. This was significantly less than the 6.7 year reduction as reported by patients. Dr. Bradley says that patients may overestimate the age they will look after facelift surgery, perhaps due to their emotional and financial investment.Patients were extremely satisfied with their facelift results, scoring over 80 on the FACEQ questionnaire. Patient satisfaction was directly related to the accuracy of neural network age estimates. Dr. Bradley says that the AI program's perception of a patient's age is correlated with their satisfaction with their facelift results.The new research suggests that artificial intelligence algorithms can be used to estimate the age reduction after facelift surgery. These age estimates can also be used to estimate patient satisfaction scores, even though the reduction in years may not match the patient's subjective rating.Dr. Bradley says that neural networks, together with modern image analysis tools, could play a valuable role in counseling patients or demonstrating the success of facial rejuvenation treatments. We believe that AI algorithms can also be useful for plastic surgeons to help them evaluate their results and compare the outcomes of different techniques.###Click here to read the article "Turning Back The Clock: Artificial Intelligence Recognition Of Age Reduction After Face-Lift Surgery Correlates With Patient Satisfaction."DOI: 10.1097/PRS.0000000000008020Plastic and Reconstructive surgery is published by Wolters Kluwer in the Lippincott portfolio.Reconstructive and Plastic SurgeryPlastic and Reconstructive surgery (http://www.) has been around for over 75 years. prsjournal. prsjournal.com/ has been the best resource for any plastic surgeon who uses or works with one. Plastic and Reconstructive surgery is the official journal of American Society of Plastic Surgeons. It provides up-to-date reports and follow-up on all aspects of plastic and reconstructive surgeries, including breast reconstruction, experimental study, burn repair, and cosmetic surgery, and news on legal and medico-legal matters.About ASPSThe American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) is the largest international organization of board-certified plastic surgery surgeons. The society represents more than 7,000 physicians and is well-respected as an authoritative and reliable information source for cosmetic and reconstructive surgery. ASPS represents more than 94% of all American board-certified plastic surgeons. The society was founded in 1931 and includes physicians who have been certified by The American Board of Plastic Surgery and The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.Wolters KluwerWolters Kluwer is a leader in professional information and software solutions. We provide services for clinicians, accountants and lawyers. Our expert solutions combine domain knowledge and advanced technology to help customers make crucial decisions every day.Wolters Kluwer had a 2020 revenue of 4.6 billion. The company serves customers in more than 180 countries and has operations in more than 40 countries. It employs around 19,200 people in all over the world. The company's headquarters is in Alphen aan den Rijn (the Netherlands).Wolters Kluwer offers trusted clinical technology and evidence-based options that help clinicians, students, researchers, and patients in making informed decisions and achieving the best outcomes for healthcare. We provide data solutions and support clinical effectiveness, compliance, learning and research as well as clinical surveillance and compliance. Visit https:/// /www. for more information on our solutions. Wolterskluwer.com provides more information about our solutions. www.wolterskluwer.com/ en/ Health. Follow us on LinkedIn @WKHealth.
