A Deep Plane Facelift in Pearland: Inside the Surgical Suite

Suite 104 at 2360 County Road 94 in Pearland contains a reception room, a private consultation and exam room, an operating room and a recovery room set outside the surgery doors. Leo Lapuerta, MD, FACS, opened the facility in 2003 as the Plastic Surgery Institute of Southeast Texas, an on-site outpatient surgical center accredited by AAAASF, the body often called QuadA.

For patients in Pearland and on Houston’s south side who are weighing a deep plane facelift, the surgery at Leo Lapuerta, MD, Plastic Surgery takes place in that building. Dr. Lapuerta is triple board certified, by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, the American Board of Surgery and in Surgery of the Hand, and he has more than 30 years of experience and more than 30,000 surgical and non-surgical procedures behind him.

The procedure on the schedule

A deep plane facelift lifts the deeper layers of facial tissue instead of tightening skin alone. The surgeon releases and repositions sagging tissue below the superficial musculoaponeurotic system, or SMAS, which can improve jowls, deep nasolabial folds, neck contour and a descended midface.

The practice describes the best candidates as people with moderate to significant facial aging: visible jowls, lower-face heaviness, cheeks that have dropped and deepened the folds near the mouth. Some younger patients with early but meaningful tissue descent may qualify too, depending on anatomy, skin quality and goals.

The practice also lists the people it may not suit. That includes patients whose changes are still mild enough for a mini lift or SMAS facelift, those whose main concern is texture or sun damage, those who smoke or vape and cannot stop before surgery, and anyone who wants zero downtime.

Surgery day in Pearland

The deep plane procedure is usually performed under general anesthesia in an accredited surgical setting. At the Pearland facility, Dr. Lapuerta works with physician anesthesiologists, never nurse anesthetists or anesthesia assistants.

The sequence follows a plan set before the first incision. Dr. Lapuerta evaluates facial descent, skin quality, neck laxity and volume changes, and decides whether eyelid surgery or a neck lift belongs in the same operation. Incisions run around the ears and hairline, following natural creases. After the deeper tissue is repositioned, the skin is laid back and the excess trimmed with a conservative hand.

Afterward, patients move to the recovery room beside the operating suite, and staff walk them through post-operative and follow-up instructions before they leave. Beyond the Pearland facility, Dr. Lapuerta holds hospital privileges in the Memorial Hermann network, at HCA hospitals including The Woman’s Hospital of Texas, and at St. Luke’s Houston Medical Center.

The consultation room

The practice says it aims to keep appointments on time at the Pearland office, where a private room lets patients meet Dr. Lapuerta to talk through options. Patients can review before-and-after photographs there; the practice has more than 3,000 such images available.

Dr. Lapuerta is a native Spanish speaker, fluent in English, and his support staff speak both languages. For a south Houston patient who thinks in Spanish, a facelift consultation can happen in that language from the front desk onward.

Credentials beyond the suite

Dr. Lapuerta serves as Chairman of Plastic Surgery at St. Joseph Hospital in Houston, where he also completed his plastic and reconstructive surgery fellowship. He teaches as faculty for UT-Houston Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, and the Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Fellowship at Houston Methodist Hospital.

He traces the choice of specialty to medical school. “In medical school, I fell in love with surgery and pursued plastic surgery because it is the most challenging surgical speciality and allows me to help all ages of both female and male patients,” he has said.

Planning the weeks after

The practice’s deep plane guidance puts the most visible bruising and swelling in the first one to two weeks, with contours looking more refined between weeks three and six and tissues settling over months two through six. Scars sit around the ears and hairline and soften over time. Every operation carries risks, and the consultation is where those belong.

The practice’s preparation guidance asks for a friend or family member to drive the patient home from Pearland and stay with them after surgery, plus a recovery spot at home where the head can stay elevated through the night.

This article is for general information only and is not medical advice. Results vary from patient to patient. Consult a board-certified plastic surgeon or your physician about your own situation. Written in partnership with Joseph Lambert, a publicist working with Leo Lapuerta, MD Plastic Surgery.