Brow Lift Scars: Where the Incisions Go and How They Heal

A brow lift raises a low or heavy brow and smooths the forehead, and like any surgery that uses an incision, it leaves scars. The good news is that with the most common technique those scars sit inside the hair and are very hard to find once healed. This guide explains where each technique places its incisions, what the scars look like as they heal and what helps keep them hidden.

Why the technique decides the scar

There is more than one way to lift a brow, and each technique reaches the forehead through a different incision. The choice depends on how far the brow has dropped, how much the forehead skin has loosened and how high your hairline already sits. So the scar question and the technique question are really the same question. The guide to brow lift in Beverly Hills covers the techniques themselves in more detail.

Endoscopic brow lift: small scars hidden in the hair

The endoscopic brow lift uses a few short incisions placed just behind the hairline. A small camera and fine instruments let the surgeon release and reposition the brow from underneath, without a long cut. Because the incisions are short and sit within the hair-bearing scalp, there is no visible scar along the hairline, and the scars are usually only found by parting the hair over them.

Dr. Newman performs the endoscopic brow lift in most cases. It suits most patients and is the reason a brow lift can leave scars that nobody else ever notices.

When a hairline or open approach makes more sense

For patients with significant brow descent or a lot of loose forehead skin, a modified hairline or open technique may be more appropriate, because those cases need more access than small incisions allow. Each of these approaches places its scar somewhere different:

Hairline incision. The incision follows the front edge of the hairline, often with an irregular line that blends with the hairs. It avoids moving a high hairline further back, and its scar sits at the border of the hair, where careful closure lets hair grow through and soften it.
Coronal incision. A single longer incision runs across the top of the scalp, well inside the hair. The scar is hidden by hair, but this approach raises the hairline, so it suits people whose foreheads are not already tall.
Temporal incisions. Short incisions sit inside the hair at the temples and lift the outer part of the brow only.
Direct incision. The incision sits just above the eyebrow hairs. It leaves a scar on the face rather than in the scalp, so it is used rarely and for specific cases.

The right approach is a decision for your consultation, where your brow position, forehead and hairline can be assessed together.

What the scars look like as they heal

In the first weeks the incisions are closed lines within the hair, often with some swelling and bruising across the forehead and around the eyes. Over the following months the scars flatten, soften and fade. Like all scars, they keep maturing for a year or more, so that is the right time to judge the final result. For most endoscopic patients the end result is a few small lines that are lost in the hair.

Hair around the incisions

Hair normally grows around and over incisions placed inside the scalp. Some people notice temporary thinning right beside an incision while it heals, and in most cases it grows back. Mention any patch that seems slow to fill in at your follow up. Gentle handling of the scalp, following your instructions on washing and avoiding tight hairstyles or harsh treatments over the incisions in the early weeks all give the hair the best chance.

Numbness and other sensations

Numbness or tingling of the scalp behind the incisions is common after a brow lift, because small sensory nerves are affected when the forehead tissue is released. It gradually settles as the nerves recover over the following weeks. Itching is also common as sensation returns, and it is a normal part of healing rather than a sign of a problem.

What affects how the scars turn out

Your skin. Some people heal with fine, flat scars and others tend toward thicker ones. Tell your surgeon how earlier cuts or surgery scars have healed.
Tension. A scar under tension tends to widen. Careful repositioning and fixation from underneath keep the strain off the incisions.
Sun. A direct or hairline scar exposed to sun can darken. Keep it covered or protected while it matures.
Smoking. Nicotine reduces blood flow to healing skin and slows wound healing.
Aftercare. Keeping the incisions clean, sleeping with your head raised as advised and avoiding strenuous activity early on give them the best start.

When a scar needs more help

A small number of scars heal wider, raised or with less hair around them than expected. These can usually be improved with silicone, steroid injections, laser treatment or a small revision once the scar has matured. The guide to scar revision explains the options.

Brow lift, eyelid surgery or Botox?

Heavy upper eyelids are sometimes caused by a low brow rather than extra eyelid skin, and the two are often treated together. Upper eyelid surgery leaves its own scar in the natural crease of the eyelid. For a mild, temporary lift with no incision at all, the guide to the Botox brow lift explains what injections can and cannot do, and the guide to hooded eyes explains how to tell which problem you have.

The short version

A brow lift always leaves scars, but with the endoscopic technique they are small and hidden behind the hairline, with no visible scar along the hairline itself. Dr. Newman performs the endoscopic brow lift in most cases, and uses a modified hairline or open technique when the brow has dropped further. The scars fade over a year or more, hair usually grows around them, and protecting them from sun and not smoking help them heal well.

Want to know where your incisions would go?

A consultation looks at your brow position, forehead and hairline together, so you know which technique fits and where its scars would sit before you decide.

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Yes. Every incision heals with a scar. With the endoscopic technique the incisions are small and sit behind the hairline, so the scars are hidden by hair and are very hard to find once healed.

That depends on the technique. Endoscopic and temporal lifts place small incisions inside the hair. A coronal lift uses one longer incision across the top of the scalp. A hairline lift places the incision along the front edge of the hairline, and a direct lift places it just above the eyebrow.

The endoscopic brow lift, because its incisions are small and hidden in the hair-bearing scalp. Dr. Newman performs the endoscopic brow lift in most cases.

Hair normally grows around and over incisions placed inside the scalp. Some people notice temporary thinning right beside an incision while it heals, and in most cases the hair grows back.

Small sensory nerves in the scalp are affected when the forehead tissue is released. Numbness or tingling is common and gradually settles as the nerves recover over the following weeks.

Usually, yes. A scar that heals wide or raised can often be improved with silicone, steroid injections, laser treatment or a small revision once it has matured.