Brow Lift (Browplasty) Cost in Newcastle NSW
A brow lift (browplasty) repositions a brow that has descended with age. Brow position changes in everyone over time, and surgery is one option for people whose brow has settled low enough to affect the upper lid. I perform it under general anaesthesia at Maitland Private Hospital as a day stay, using 1 of 4 techniques chosen at consultation: temporal (lateral), pretrichial (hairline), direct, or mid-forehead. The technique changes where the scar sits and how the operation is done. The figure below is for the least complex case with any of the 4.
A brow lift (browplasty) performed for the appearance of the brow is cosmetic surgery. There is no Medicare item number for it, and GST applies to every fee.
My surgical fee for a brow lift (browplasty) starts at $5,489 including GST for the least complex case. That is my fee only. The anaesthetist and Maitland Private Hospital bill separately and set their own charges. With those included, the total comes to approximately $15,000 including GST, with no Medicare rebate and no health fund contribution. You receive an individual written quote after your consultation. The starting fee assumes a normal BMI, a single brow lift (browplasty) technique with no additional procedures, a day stay, and no previous brow or forehead surgery.
I am Dr Bernard Beldholm FRACS, Specialist Surgeon, with more than 15 years of experience in face and neck surgery. I consult and operate at Maitland Private Hospital in the Hunter Valley, and my patients come from Newcastle, Maitland, the wider Hunter region and across regional NSW.
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What my fee includes
My surgical fee for a brow lift (browplasty) covers more than the operation itself. It includes:
Your second consultation at no cost
This is required before surgery, and it is where I review your blood results, confirm the technique, and mark out where the incision and scar will sit. It can be done remotely if you live some distance from Maitland.
The operation
Under general anaesthesia at Maitland Private Hospital.
All follow-up for 12 months
I see you closely over the first 2 weeks, then at 4 weeks, 3 months, 6 months and 12 months.
LED light therapy
During your recovery, used to support healing of the incision.
Dressings and wound care
Through the early recovery period.
There is no separate charge if you need to be seen between scheduled visits because of a concern.
What makes up your total cost
The figure in the first section is built from 4 separate components. Only the first one is mine.
My surgical fee
Set by me for your operation and confirmed in writing after consultation.
The anaesthetist
A specialist anaesthetist provides your general anaesthetic and bills separately. The anaesthetic consultation is by phone in most cases, with the physical examination on the day of surgery.
Maitland Private Hospital
Theatre time and your day stay are billed by the hospital at its cosmetic theatre rate. An overnight stay is available if you prefer it or live a long way from the hospital, and the hospital quotes that separately.
Disposables
Surgical consumables used during the operation, billed by the hospital.
Two things can change the quote from the starting figure:
- The technique. The 4 techniques take different amounts of theatre time. Which one is suited to you is decided at consultation, and your written quote reflects that decision.
- Upper eyelid surgery. Where both the brow position and excess upper lid skin are contributing, an upper blepharoplasty (upper eyelid surgery) is a separate operation with its own quote, and I only combine the two where both are genuinely indicated, decided at consultation. The figures are on my page on the cost of upper blepharoplasty (upper eyelid surgery).
Medicare and health funds
A brow lift (browplasty) has no Medicare item number, so there is no rebate and your health fund does not contribute to the surgeon, anaesthetist or hospital fees. Because no item number applies, 10% GST is charged on all 3 of those fees, and Maitland Private Hospital bills theatre time at its cosmetic rate, which is higher than the rate it charges for procedures covered by an item number.
If a revision is needed within 12 months of your operation, I do not charge a surgical fee for it. The hospital and anaesthetist charges for a revision are billed separately by them.
I explain how surgical quotes are structured, what an all-inclusive figure covers, and how to compare one quote with another in my article on what a facelift (rhytidectomy) quote includes.
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Your next step
You need a GP referral before a consultation. Once you have it, my rooms will book you in. I consult at Maitland Private Hospital, and if you live regionally the first consultation can be done by telehealth, with the in-person examination completed before any surgery is planned. After your consultation you receive my written surgical quote, and my patient coordinator organises the separate quotes from the hospital and the anaesthetist so you can see the full cost before you decide anything.
Where to read more
The figure on this page tells you what a brow lift (browplasty) costs, not whether it is the right operation for you. That question starts with my brow lift (browplasty) service page, which covers the 4 techniques I use and who each suits, with more depth in my article on brow lift (browplasty) techniques and assessment. For the weeks after surgery, read my article on brow lift (browplasty) recovery, and for a frank account of what can go wrong, my article on brow lift (browplasty) risks and complications. All published figures are listed together on my face and neck surgery costs page.