French Thread Lift

What is a French thread lift?

In Turkish, ‘Fransız askısı’ (French thread lift) is one of the names given to lifting treatments performed with threads. During the procedure, surgical threads with barbs on their surface that grip the tissue are placed under the skin. These threads are considered to have two separate functions: to lift the tissue upwards in a set direction as soon as they are placed, and to stimulate the production of connective tissue through the tissue response they create around them.

The procedure usually does not require a surgical incision, and no skin is removed. In this respect it is a different treatment from a surgical facelift. The two are not a mild and a more intensive version of the same procedure; they are two separate methods that work on different scales.

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When is it considered?

According to professional sources, a thread lift is considered when there is mild to moderate skin laxity. The situations discussed in practice are loss of definition in the facial contour, laxity in the cheeks and loss of definition along the jawline.

If the sagging is advanced and there is noticeable excess skin, the support that threads can provide is not enough. In this case, surgical methods are considered, and the assessment is made by a doctor in the relevant speciality. Which group your laxity falls into is decided at a consultation, not from a photograph or a description.

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Which areas have been studied in research?

Thread lifts have been studied most in the face. The method has also been used on the neck; reviews covering the face and neck together have looked at the side effects in both areas combined.

Lifting techniques have also been described for the temple and brow area, but outcome data for this area are very limited. The published studies included few patients and had no comparison group, and it is not yet clear how long the effect lasts. If you are considering a thread lift for the brow or temple area, you should set your expectations with this uncertainty in mind.

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How does the mechanical support work?

A barbed (cog) thread grips the tissue under the skin, lifts it from where it sits and repositions it along the direction in which the thread runs. Part of the lifting effect comes from this mechanical grip during the procedure.

However, the scale of this lift is limited. According to professional sources, the lift achieved with threads stays in the range of millimetres, and the result is less noticeable than with a surgical facelift. With dissolvable (absorbable) threads, the tissue response that develops as the thread dissolves has been reported to make a second contribution; however, data on how long this effect lasts are limited.

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Limits of this treatment

First: a thread lift is not a substitute for a surgical facelift. According to professional sources, the lift achieved with threads is in the range of millimetres and is not enough for advanced sagging.

Second: the result lasts for a limited time. According to professional sources, the result of a thread lift generally lasts one to three years, while the result of a surgical facelift can last up to ten years. This is a range, not a promise; it varies with the thread used, the area treated and the person.

Third: data on effectiveness are limited. According to a review of research in this field, the method looks promising, but no new evidence has been added to support its use. So if you are considering the procedure, you should be given detailed information about possible side effects, how long the result will last and the limits of the effectiveness data.

These three limits do not mean the treatment should not be done; they show where you should set your expectations. Your doctor assesses you; the decision is yours.

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What can you expect afterwards?

For findings seen early on, a 2026 meta-analysis (an analysis that combines the results of many studies) reports these rates: swelling 34%, bruising 26%, pain 11%.

According to this meta-analysis, the rates of findings that appear later and may need a corrective procedure are as follows:

• Thread that is visible or can be felt by touch: 10%
• Skin dimpling and asymmetry: 7%
• Altered sensation in the treatment area: 6%
• Thread coming out through the skin surface: 5%
• Infection: 2%

In a 2021 review that looked at face and neck treatments together, the most commonly reported finding is asymmetry: 6,143 reports in a series of 14,222 patients. This is followed by swelling (oedema, 453) and bruising (ecchymosis, 407). According to this review, serious side effects are rare and most findings resolve on their own; the exceptions are irregularities in the facial contours, injuries to blood vessels and glands, infection and inflammatory reactions.

The fact that the two studies give such different rates for asymmetry is also important: the studies used different threads, different techniques and different follow-up periods. These figures are not the result to expect in your case; they are ranges reported in research.

You can find the clinic’s aftercare advice in the Aftercare section at the end of this page.

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The difference between dissolvable and permanent threads

The main difference between the two groups is whether the material stays in the body.

Dissolvable (absorbable) threads are made from materials such as polydioxanone (PDO), poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA) and polycaprolactone. Over time they are broken down by water in the body (hydrolysis), dissolve and leave nothing behind. How quickly they dissolve depends on the material.

Permanent threads are made from non-dissolving materials such as polypropylene and stay in the tissue; if they need to be removed, this requires a separate procedure. Late problems have also been reported in this group, such as a long-lasting (chronic) inflammatory reaction and the thread moving towards the skin; however, these reports are at the level of individual patient cases (case reports).

Long-term effectiveness data are limited for both groups. Research does not simply label one group good and the other bad; each has its own advantages and disadvantages.

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Compared with fillers

Fillers and thread lifts are not interchangeable; they address different problems.

Fillers are used to replace lost volume, shape facial contours and provide structural support. Lifting threads, on the other hand, are used to reposition tissue that has sagged under gravity. Put simply, one replaces what is missing; the other lifts what has slipped out of place.

In practice, the distinction may not be so clear-cut: the same face can have both volume loss and sagging, and there are studies in which the two methods were used together. Which is considered for you, in what order, or whether both are used together is decided at a consultation.

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