Dr Christopher Johnsson, from the Beloura Clinic in Lisbon, has been helping patients make their dreams come true for 16 years, ever since he arrived in Portugal after his international career.

Born in Brazil, Dr Christopher Johnsson is an international plastic surgeon who, before coming to Portugal, studied in his home country with Dr Ivo Pintanguy, who is known all over the world. The doctor trained in the USA, where he learned many techniques from Dr Bruce Connell and Dr Daniel Baker, especially the Deep SMAS (Superficial muscular apenorotical system), which he has perfected over the years.

These refined skills that the doctor has developed have a very significant impact on patients who get really natural results that even their closest friends may not notice they've had surgery. But when you compare the before and after photos, the improvement is astounding.

“The result is quite natural. The feedback I get is that friends say that something is different but they can't tell what it is and that for me is the best result. I'm always happy to receive this feedback from my patients.”

Which surgery are patients most keen on?

According to the doctor, the most sought-after surgery is the eyelid and there are several reasons and complaints that patients seeking these treatments share in common. "Some of them are not satisfied when they look in the mirror, others feel it is useless to wear make-up, but sometimes the droopy eyelid can even cause vision changes”.

"This surgery is quite common. Patients begin complaining of an excess of skin on the lateral part of the upper eyelids. In these cases, we remove the excess skin. When the complaint refers to puffy bags on the lower eyelids, we don't even need to cut the skin. We make an incision from the mucosa and remove the excess fat. There is no visible scarring afterwards" said the doctor.

Facelift and neck lift

Eyelid surgery is followed by a facelift and neck lift, which are often performed in the same surgery. "It usually involves a neck lift and a facelift. Let's say a 45-year-old patient sometimes has almost no signs of aging on the neck so the correct procedure will be a facelift. But if the patient is a bit older and the skin is sagging, then we choose to do a facelift and neck lift. It's very rare to do just the neck," he said.

When is the best time to do a facelift?

These surgeries can be carried out all year round. However, they should ideally be done before summer or after summer, because it's not advisable to go out in the sun. “For a month you shouldn't go to the beach or lie in the sun at the swimming pool. If you have eyelid surgery done, you should wear sunglasses to protect against UV light."

"I have patients who are only available to do surgery during the summer holidays and who say they don't like the sun and won't go out in it. In these cases, the operation can be carried out in the summer," he said, adding that patients can always get a bit of sun, like going to and from the car, driving, there's no problem, as they're not going to be exposed to direct sunlight, like laying at the beach.


Times have changed

The doctor told me that when he first started working in Portugal 16 years ago, people were more concerned about being operated on for aesthetic reasons and not because of a disease. "That was in the beginning. Nowadays I have a very large number of Portuguese patients as well as International ones. In the past years, I've been doing a lot of facelifts which is the surgery that I really enjoy."

This new era of plastic surgery is very important for patients because "everyone is entitled to feel good about how they look. It is all about having high self-esteem, looking in the mirror and being happy with the image they see.”

More women than men

Although men are becoming increasingly interested in plastic surgery, around 95 percent of Dr Christopher Johnsson's patients are still female. "I see more men nowadays, but over 95 percent of my clients are women. I do facelifts in men, as well as neck and eyelid surgery too," he said.

For more information, visit his Instagram profile @drjohnsson If you would like to contact the doctor directly, here is his WhatsApp number for more information or to book a consultation: (+351) 912 158 827

Author

Paula Martins is a fully qualified journalist, who finds writing a means of self-expression. She studied Journalism and Communication at University of Coimbra and recently Law in the Algarve. Press card: 8252

Paula Martins