‘Best surgery ever’: Young women undergoing Bella Hadid-inspired procedure

More and more young women are going under the knife for “ponytail facelifts” in a bid to achieve that fresh-faced supermodel look.

Young women in New York are going under the knife for “ponytail facelifts” – a cheaper, less intense pick-me-up than a traditional facelift that still achieves dramatic results.

“This is a procedure that was essentially made for women in their late twenties and early thirties,” Manhattan-based plastic surgeon, Ari Hoschander, told the New York Post, adding he’d seen a massive uptick in requests for the surgery since Covid-19.

“The ponytail facelift offers way less swelling, there’s minor pain and you’ll look ‘normal’ much quicker.”

Unlike a standard facelift, during which doctors make incisions all around the head and neck, surgeons performing a ponytail facelift achieve a tightened look by making only a few cuts along the hairline and behind the ears, extracting excess tissue from the forehead and tugging the skin back to create a firm finish.

It transforms a patient’s face in the way that an extremely snug ponytail might, hence the name, but it’s most effective for younger patients who don’t have as much sagging skin as their older counterparts.

Supermodel Bella Hadid. Picture: Samir Hussein/WireImage

Hadid is suspected to have had a ponytail facelift. Picture: Instagram

Gabi DeMartino said she feels more confident thanks to the ponytail facelift. Picture: Instagram

Those who opt for the surgery, first popularised by Los Angeles-based plastic and reconstructive surgeon Chia Chi Kao in the early 2000s, can expect to resume daily activities – such as going grocery shopping or out to a restaurant – sans bandages, bleeding or bruising in just a week.

With a traditional facelift, patients are typically given a recovery time of four to six weeks.

Ponytail facelifts are also far cheaper. In New York, surgeons can charges as little as $US10,000 ($15,781) or as much as $US100,000 ($157,810) for one, while a traditional facelift can range anywhere between $US20,000 ($31,562) and $US200,000 ($315,573).

Manhattan-based YouTuber Gabi DeMartino, who has a following of more than 3.1 million, got a ponytail lift at the onset of the pandemic when she was just 25.

She’d noticed the skin around her forehead and eyes beginning to sag and felt insecure about it.

For the procedure, which was performed by Upper East Side plastic surgeon Ramtin Kassirshe, she shelled out approximately $US14,000 ($22,081) and said it was well worth it.

“The procedure made a subtle but positive difference,” the now-28-year-old said.

“I’m super happy I did it.”

Singer Ariana Grande has also been cited as inspiration to go under the knife. Picture: Neilson Barnard/Getty Images

But, Dr Hoschander told The Post that the ponytail lift, while great as a quick alteration, isn’t a cosmetic cure-all. The surgery can’t effectively treat common issues on the upper third of the face, such as crow’s-feet, the “eleven lines” between the eyes, and the horizontal lines across the forehead.

“To erase them,” he said, “a patient would still need Botox.”

Ms DeMartino said she drew inspiration for her own surgery from supermodel Bella Hadid and Grammy-winning singer Ariana Grande. Both have been rumoured to have undergone the transfiguration. Representatives for Hadid or Grande did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.

Social media is helping to fuel the treatment’s popularity. On TikTok, the term #PonytailLift has amassed over 28 million views. And, it’s not just buzzy in New York and LA.

Boston-based, Harvard-affiliated plastic surgeon, Samuel Lin, told The Post he’s noticed a 25 per cent increase in demand for facial rejuvenation operations such as eyelifts, lip augmentations and, of course, the ponytail facelift, from younger women since 2020.

Olivia Molina Avellaneda said it was 'the best surgery I ever did in my life'. Picture: Supplied

'I look younger than 20-year-old girls,' the 34-year-old said. Picture: Supplied

However, he also warned that a ponytail facelift isn’t a permanent fix. Patients get a tightened look for about five years, compared to a decade with traditional facelifts.

“This doesn’t necessarily offer the same lasting results,” Dr Lin said of the surgery.

“But people are seeking this procedure as a way to age gracefully [with treatment].”

Olivia Molina Allevaneda, a 34-year-old model and mother-of-five, travelled to LA in September 2021 from Florida to undergo the procedure with Dr Kao, which set her back just over $US50,000 ($78,843).

“It is the best surgery I ever did in my life,” she told The Post.

“I look younger than 20-year-old girls.”

This article originally appeared on the New York Post and was reproduced with permission