One week, Dr. Andrew Jacono might perform a facelift on a fashion designer in his Manhattan practice. The next, he's repairing cleft palates in a makeshift surgical suite in rural Ecuador. The contrast isn't unusual for the dual board-certified facial plastic surgeon who has spent two decades building a career that exists in two vastly different worlds.
Dr. Andrew Jacono has performed more than 750 surgeries on children with cleft lips, palates, and facial deformities through international missions spanning Southeast Asia, Central America, and South America. He has also provided reconstructive surgery to over 100 survivors of domestic violence through the FACE TO FACE program. Meanwhile, he performs approximately 250 deep-plane facelifts annually for patients including fashion designer Marc Jacobs and fellow plastic surgeon Dr. Paul Nassif.
The contrast between treating high-profile patients in Manhattan and performing cleft repair surgeries in rural villages reflects a philosophy shaped by a childhood experience. Dr. Andrew Jacono recalls sitting next to a classmate with a cleft lip on his school bus, watching other children tease her relentlessly. After she underwent reconstructive surgery, classmates suddenly treated her differently. That observation crystallized his understanding of how facial appearance affects social interaction and opportunity.
Teaching Surgeons While Serving Communities
Dr. Andrew Jacono has served for most of his career as a Fellowship Director for the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. He has trained Fellows from the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery in advanced techniques. His influence extends internationally through surgical conferences and educational programs.
Dr. Gregor Bran, a London-based plastic surgeon, recently acknowledged Dr. Andrew Jacono's impact on the field. "He is the reason everybody's talking about Deep Plane facelift surgery," Bran said in a social media post. "He has taught everybody who is good everything he knows." Bran noted that at a recent Milan facelift course, nearly every presenter had visited Dr. Andrew Jacono at some point in their careers.
That teaching extends beyond formal fellowship programs. Dr. Andrew Jacono leads surgical missions with organizations including Healing the Children, HUGS Foundation, and THAI Children. These trips focus on children with cleft lips, palates, microtia, facial tumors, and burn scars in regions with limited access to specialized surgical care. He typically leads approximately two mission trips annually.
Domestic Violence Reconstruction and Media Documentation
Dr. Andrew Jacono served as National Chairman of the FACE TO FACE Committee for the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, a program providing pro bono consultation and surgery to victims of domestic violence. His work in this area was documented in the television series Facing Trauma, which aired on the Oprah Winfrey Network and Discovery Fit & Health in 2011.
The series followed Dr. Andrew Jacono as he performed reconstructive procedures on women whose faces bore evidence of abuse. The surgeries addressed injuries including fractured orbital bones, nasal fractures, and facial scarring. U.S. Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy commended Dr. Andrew Jacono in the Congressional Record for his contributions to women's welfare through surgery and charity.
The Center for the Women of New York awarded him the "Good Guy" Award in 2006, recognizing his advocacy and pro bono work. He chaired ABOUT FACE: MAKING CHANGES, an annual benefit for survivors of domestic violence, for nine years.
Climbing Mountains to Fund Surgical Missions
Dr. Andrew Jacono has climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, Cotopaxi in Ecuador, and Mount Elbrus in Russia as part of campaigns to raise awareness and funds for victims of domestic violence and children needing surgery. These climbs generate resources for mission logistics and draw attention to the causes he supports.
The mountaineering expeditions serve a practical purpose beyond symbolism. International surgical missions require funding for travel, equipment, medications, and local coordination. Dr. Andrew Jacono uses the climbs to engage donors and create visibility for organizations that facilitate reconstructive surgery in underserved communities.
His humanitarian work exists alongside a clinical practice that treats patients seeking aesthetic refinement. Newsweek ranked Dr. Andrew Jacono as the third-best facelift surgeon in America for 2025. He has earned the Most Compassionate Doctor Award consecutively from 2012 to 2022, an honor given to fewer than 3% of physicians.
Technical Innovation and Longevity
Dr. Andrew Jacono developed the extended deep-plane facelift technique in the early 2000s, addressing limitations of traditional facelift approaches. The technique lifts skin, muscle, and fat as a unified structure rather than pulling skin taut. Key factors that affect the longevity of the extended deep-plane facelift include technique, lifestyle, skin quality, and care. Results can last 12 to 15 years when these factors align favorably.
Town & Country noted that his technique produces outcomes where patients "look like refreshed versions of themselves" rather than obviously altered. This approach attracted patients including Marc Jacobs, who publicly revealed in 2021 that Dr. Andrew Jacono performed his facelift.
Dr. Andrew Jacono maintains academic appointments as Associate Clinical Professor at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Section Head of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at North Shore University Hospital. He has published more than 70 peer-reviewed articles in journals including Aesthetic Surgery Journal and JAMA Facial Plastic Surgery.
His 2021 medical textbook on extended deep-plane facelifting synthesizes insights from over 2,000 procedures. The combination of high-volume clinical experience, teaching responsibilities, and humanitarian missions creates a practice model where aesthetic surgery funds reconstructive work for those who cannot afford treatment. Dr. Andrew Jacono continues to lead surgical teams on international missions while maintaining his Manhattan practice, proving that the skills used to help celebrities look their best can also restore hope to children born with facial deformities and survivors rebuilding their lives after trauma.
