What is an Endoscopic Brow Lift?
Minimally invasive brow lifting procedure
An endoscopic brow lift is an advanced, minimally invasive procedure that addresses sagging brows, forehead wrinkles, and frown lines. Unlike traditional brow lift techniques that require long incisions across the hairline, the endoscopic approach uses several small incisions hidden within the hair. Dr. Claytor uses a tiny camera (endoscope) and specialized instruments to lift and reposition the brow tissues, creating natural-looking rejuvenation with less scarring and downtime.
This technique is ideal for patients who want to address early to moderate brow descent, horizontal forehead lines, and the tired or angry appearance caused by drooping brows. The endoscopic method preserves hairline position, minimizes visible scarring, and allows for precise, customized lifting that complements your unique facial structure.
Show video transcript
Endoscopic brow lift. What is it? How does it work? How do you do it? Patients will come in and they’ll say, “Dr. Claytor, my brow, I would like to have it lifted. How do we do this?” We mark where it is that they want it lifted. We make tiny little incisions up in the scalp so you don’t see them. Often times, we’ll make another tiny little incision here. What I do is I go in with my scope and I’m able to elevate the tissue and look around and do all the releasing. And I’m looking and releasing. This is a very very dense area of adhesion right along the lateral brow and it is essential to release that area so that you get a really really good desirable brow lift that stays for a long time. That’s one of the frustrations with a brow lift is that they drop down over time. So you’re coming in with a scope and that’s what allows you to do this very minimally invasively. In the old days we would make big incisions across here right at the hairline and I think they were just impossible to hide that scar and I think there was a lot of stigmata with that.
So after you’ve used the scope to elevate everything and release everything, now you come in with your drill. A lot of times we do this on patients who are awake, which is interesting. They really have no concept where we’re doing this because the skull region is an area that is insensate once you’re down to the skull. So they don’t feel it at all. So we engage the drill. When we turn the handle, the drill bit spins around. It does not go all the way through. It just goes through the outer cortex of the skull. And that allows us to then be able to place the endotine, which is an absorbable piece of material with these little hooks on it that we’re able to place right into the skull. We lift the brow, set it where we want it, and then we set it down on these endotines. And so it’s a little triangular shaped device that sits in there and it gives amazing fixation that stays in place until this dissolves, which is about 6 to 9 months away.
Sometimes patients can feel it and that’s why it’s important to put it up in the hairline. If you put it too far down onto the area of the scalp that does not have hair, you might see these little bumps. So, you put it up in the hairline so it’s basically invisible. And you can comb your hair and do everything else. And then there are a few little stitches that go right in the area of access. And you want to talk to the patient and say, “Where do you want your brow lifted?” Cuz some people want it lifted centrally, some people want it lifted laterally. And so you can migrate or move this when you first put it in to determine where you want to get the greatest lift.
If you wanted a lateral lift, a lot of times patients will come in and say, “I’m looking for those fox eyes.” That’s a really big concept today. So you need to go down here and release all of the lateral canthal retaining ligaments here. You want to let go all of these so that now the corner of the eye can come up. And this can be done through the brow lift incisions. It’s a fantastic technique. Sometimes patients don’t want to have that much elevation. Other times patients are looking for that. That’s why it’s so important to ask patients, what are you after? What are you looking for? What’s your interest? These are all the things that are possible with the endoscopic brow lift procedure.
As a recap, here we are with the scope. We can enter in here and this can give us visualization of all these different areas. So we can come in and be visualizing here while we come in with an instrument that we can use to do all the dissection and release all of the attachments. That’s the power of these small incisions through a scope. Endoscopic brow lift. Fantastic technique to elevate the upper third of the face. Hope you found this helpful.
Benefits of Endoscopic Brow Lift
- Minimal scarring (small incisions hidden in hairline)
- Shorter recovery time compared to traditional methods
- Natural-looking, long-lasting results
- Reduced forehead wrinkles and frown lines
- Elevated brow position for a more alert, youthful appearance
- Can be performed under local anesthesia with sedation
Who is a Good Candidate for Endoscopic Brow Lift?
You may be an ideal candidate for an endoscopic brow lift if you:
- Have mild to moderate brow descent or sagging
- Experience deep horizontal forehead wrinkles
- Notice frown lines between your eyebrows (glabellar lines)
- Feel your brows make you look tired, sad, or angry
- Have good skin elasticity and overall health
- Are a non-smoker or willing to quit before surgery
- Have realistic expectations about surgical outcomes
The endoscopic technique works best for patients with adequate bone structure and forehead height. If you have significant brow ptosis (severe drooping), a traditional or direct brow lift may be more appropriate. Dr. Claytor will evaluate your facial anatomy, skin quality, and aesthetic goals during your consultation to determine the best approach.
Patients who combine brow lift with upper blepharoplasty (eyelid surgery) often achieve the most dramatic rejuvenation of the upper face, as both procedures work synergistically to open and refresh the eye area.
Dr. Claytor uses advanced minimally invasive techniques to lift and rejuvenate the brow area, reducing forehead wrinkles and creating a refreshed, natural-looking appearance with minimal scarring and faster recovery.
What to Expect During Your Endoscopic Brow Lift
Your endoscopic brow lift is performed at Dr. Claytor’s private, accredited surgical suite in Bryn Mawr, ensuring comfort, safety, and privacy throughout your experience. The procedure typically takes 1-2 hours, depending on whether additional treatments are combined.
Anesthesia
Dr. Claytor can perform endoscopic brow lift under local anesthesia with IV sedation or general anesthesia, depending on your preference and medical history. Many patients prefer the “awake” option for faster recovery and reduced anesthesia risks.
Surgical Steps
- Incision Placement: Dr. Claytor makes 3-5 small incisions (less than one inch each) behind your hairline, strategically positioned to remain completely hidden.
- Endoscopic Visualization: A tiny camera is inserted through one incision, allowing Dr. Claytor to view the underlying tissues on a monitor with exceptional precision.
- Tissue Release & Repositioning: Using specialized instruments, he gently releases the tissues that cause frown lines and forehead wrinkles, then lifts and secures the brow in its new, elevated position.
- Fixation: The lifted tissues are secured using small dissolvable anchors or sutures, eliminating the need for visible external fixation.
- Closure: The small incisions are closed with sutures that are typically removed within 7-10 days.
The endoscopic approach allows Dr. Claytor to achieve precise, customized lifting while minimizing trauma to surrounding tissues, resulting in less swelling, bruising, and faster recovery compared to traditional techniques.
“Dr. Claytor is very down to earth and listened so well to my concerns and offered tremendous advice throughout the entire process. He is very knowledgeable and left me feeling comfortable and confident in my decision to proceed with my procedure. His entire staff is great as well, they were kind and helpful each step of the way. Fast forward to procedure day, I had mine done under local anesthesia in his office. Dr. Claytor and his team were phenomenal every step of the way. I felt safe and in good hands in their office OR. He explained to me what he was doing each step of the way to help make me feel comfortable. It was quick and painless, I went home and here I am 2 weeks out feeling great and very happy with my results!”
Endoscopic Brow Lift Recovery Timeline
Recovery from endoscopic brow lift is generally faster and more comfortable than traditional brow lift techniques due to the minimally invasive nature of the procedure.
- First 48 Hours: Mild to moderate swelling and bruising around the forehead and eyes are normal. Keeping your head elevated and applying cold compresses helps minimize swelling. Most discomfort is well-controlled with prescribed pain medication.
- First Week: Swelling and bruising peak around days 2-3, then gradually improve. You’ll return for suture removal around day 7-10. Most patients feel comfortable returning to desk work and light activities within 5-7 days.
- Weeks 2-4: Residual swelling continues to subside. You may notice some numbness or itching across the scalp and forehead—this is temporary and resolves over several weeks. Most visible signs of surgery have faded by week 3-4.
- 6 Weeks & Beyond: Strenuous exercise and heavy lifting can typically resume after 4-6 weeks. Final results become apparent as all swelling resolves and tissues fully settle into their new position.
Post-Operative Care
- Keep your incisions clean and dry
- Sleep with head elevated for the first week
- Avoid bending, straining, or heavy lifting
- Follow all medication instructions
- Attend all follow-up appointments
- Protect your forehead from sun exposure
Dr. Claytor and his team will provide you with detailed post-operative instructions and remain available throughout your recovery to answer any questions.
What Results Can I Expect?
Endoscopic brow lift creates natural-looking rejuvenation that typically lasts 7-10 years or longer. You’ll notice:
- A more youthful, alert, and refreshed appearance
- Softened horizontal forehead lines
- Reduced or eliminated frown lines
- Elevated brow position that opens the eye area
- Improved facial harmony and balance
- Natural-looking results that don’t appear “surgical”
Initial results are visible once swelling subsides (2-3 weeks), with continued improvement over 3-6 months as tissues fully settle. Most patients report feeling more confident and receiving compliments about looking “well-rested” rather than obviously “done.”
Maintaining Your Results
While brow lift results are long-lasting, your face will continue to age naturally. Dr. Claytor can combine your procedure with other treatments for comprehensive facial rejuvenation:
- Deep plane facelift for lower face and neck
- Upper blepharoplasty for eyelid rejuvenation
- Neuromodulators like Botox, Dysport, and Daxxify to maintain results and prevent new wrinkles
- Skin treatments like RF Microneedling to subtly tighten and improve skin texture
Why Choose Dr. Claytor for Your Brow Lift
With over 20 years of experience and double board certification, expert facial surgeon Dr. Claytor has performed hundreds of facial rejuvenation procedures at his private, Quad-A accredited surgical suite in Bryn Mawr. He understands that brow position significantly impacts your overall facial expression and appearance. His approach focuses on creating natural, harmonious results that don’t look “done” or overdone. Dr. Claytor offers this procedure under local anesthesia for patients who are good candidates and would prefer local over general anesthesia.
Dr. Claytor often combines endoscopic brow lift with other facial procedures like upper eyelid surgery (blepharoplasty) or deep plane facelift in Philadelphia to achieve comprehensive facial rejuvenation. During your consultation, he’ll assess your facial anatomy, discuss your goals, and recommend the most effective approach for your needs.
Show video transcript
The newest innovation in facelift surgery is endotine application for elevation of the brow as well as the midface. What is that? It is a small absorbable material that we can anchor into the skull so that we can use this to elevate the brow. One of the things that we use in addition to the cable sutures that come from Chia Chi Kao’s ponytail facelift which are amazing is the drill. When you engage this into the skull and you twist drills into the skull creating a partial little hole. So we make a small incision here to get access to the skull and then what we do is we come in with the drill and we engage it into the skull. We rotate this and that drills a tiny little hole right in here. Then we come in with the endotine, very very firm, but it dissolves way after 6 months. And it has tiny little teeth. And so we can lift up and elevate the brow upwards and secure it and anchor it here and here.
Depending on what the patient’s looking for, sometimes patients want to elevate their brow medially. You would anchor it here. Sometimes the patients want to elevate their brow laterally. You would place the endotine over here. So you’d get more of a lateral brow lift. It’s amazing how you can customize this. And because we do this with the patient awake, we can be talking to them, moving them, adjusting this to get it exactly the way they were hoping to achieve it.
Here’s the scope. These are the two different pieces. Goes in here. You could look through here, but we have a camera that attaches to here. This is where a light source goes, and you can put a syringe on here to be irrigating this. This lifts up the tissue, and the scope gives you unparalleled, beautiful visualization. So, as we come in here, we can go down and release all of the attachments here so that the brow can be elevated. And this gives you amazing visualization so that you can go down and look underneath the tissue through an incision that’s no bigger than this.
So, these muscles here are the purser and the corrugators, the ones that give you the mean face. We can evulse those and make them go away just like getting permanent Botox. Or if people want to keep their procerus and corrugator muscles, that’s totally fine. We can go down and all of this area gets released so that this will elevate up. And then we anchor the lifted tissue with the endotine after we’ve used the scope to visualize it. And then we come in with the drill to make the tiny little hole in the skull. And then we place the endotine there. So that can be used to lift up and anchor and secure the brow. That’s how you do the endoscopic brow lift. Thanks so much.
Dr. R. Brannon Claytor
Dr. Claytor is board certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery and holds over 20 years of experience as a cosmetic plastic surgeon. An innovator and teacher in the field of plastic surgery, he uses advanced techniques like the drain-free tummy tuck and deep plane facelift to streamline recovery and provide natural-looking, durable results.
Frequently Asked Questions about Endoscopic Brow Lifts
If you’d like to talk one-on-one with Dr. Claytor and learn more about endoscopic brow lifts, contact Claytor Noone Plastic Surgery at (610) 527-4833 or schedule a consultation online.
Medically reviewed by Dr. R. Brannon Claytor — Updated on Mar 11, 2026