A lateral sweep is a term that describes the swept back and up appearance sometimes caused by “mini facelifts” when they are used in inappropriate candidates.
This occurs due to tissue not being supported appropriately and being pulled too much in one direction (usually too vertically). The lateral cheek tends to look swept up due to the lack of support in the lower face (jowl area) and tightness in the upper face (pre-auricular area). This unnatural-looking result can generally be avoided by appropriately repositioning the SMAS, placing the facelift incisions in the right position, and not overly tightening the facial tissues.
