Facelifts are typically outpatient procedures and may be performed in an office-based facility, surgery center, or hospital. Patients may have a choice of IV sedation or general anesthesia which allows the patient to be asleep and feel no pain during the duration of the procedure. (Most (90%) of Dr. Claytorâs patients undergo the facelift procedure under tumescent anesthesia.) The way a facelift is performed varies depending on the patient’s anatomic changes due to aging. The length of the procedure is determined by the technique chosen as well as if the patient opts to combine their facelift with another procedure.