What the material does structurally, the kind of collapsed facial line its holding strength is used for, and why it is not a default choice for every face.
Of the three thread types used at Edition, PDO is the one most people have heard of and the one most often assumed to be the standard option. It is neither a default nor a lesser alternative — it is a material chosen for a particular finding, and used where that finding is present.
This page is about that finding. What the material does structurally, what kind of facial line it is selected to address, how tissue is moved with it, and — the part that matters most — why it is not the right answer for every face that presents with descent.
The other two thread types have their own pages, as does the question of how a selection is actually made across all three. Duration figures are compared in a separate page as well, since they are easier to understand side by side than one at a time.
At Edition, PDO threads — Silhouette Fix and Mint — are selected for their holding strength and lifting effect, and are used mainly where a facial line has collapsed and needs to be brought back into position. The material engages tissue that has descended and pulls it in the intended direction, tidying the contour. Where the finding is a defined line that has lost its shape, this is what the material is for. Where the finding is midface volume that has descended, or where change in the skin itself is part of the aim, a different material suits better. Of the three types used, PDO holds for the shortest period, at approximately 6 to 8 months.
On this page
- What the material is, and what it does
- Holding strength, and what it is used for
- The finding it is selected for: a collapsed line
- How tissue is moved in the intended direction
- Why it is not a default choice
- The trade-off, stated plainly
- What it is combined with, and why
- What to expect in the weeks after
- Questions patients ask
What the material is, and what it does
PDO stands for polydioxanone, an absorbable material long used in surgery as suture. In thread lifting it is formed into threads carrying features along their length that engage soft tissue, so that tissue can be moved and held rather than simply passed through.
Two things happen once it is in place.
The first is mechanical and immediate. The thread grips tissue along its path and holds it in a repositioned location relative to a fixation point. This is why a lift produces a visible change soon after the procedure rather than only gradually.
The second is biological and gradual. As the material is absorbed over the following months, a tissue response develops around where it sat. This is why the appearance continues to settle for a period rather than being fixed on the day — at Edition the guidance is that a degree of change is apparent immediately, with tissue stabilising and the result becoming more natural over roughly one to three months.
Both effects are temporary, because the material is absorbable. PDO is the shortest-lasting of the three types used at Edition, holding for approximately 6 to 8 months, with individual variation according to skin elasticity and how far ageing has progressed. How that compares with the other materials is set out in the page on how long a thread lift lasts.
Holding strength, and what it is used for
The property that distinguishes PDO in the selection is holding strength. It grips firmly and it moves tissue decisively.
That matters because lifting is not one task. Moving a discrete structure back into a position it has left is a different problem from repositioning a volume of soft tissue across a broader area, and the two are best served by different properties.
Where a structure has to be moved decisively and held there, a material with firm engagement is the appropriate instrument. Where tissue has to be redistributed with a softer distribution of force, a different structure suits better.
This is the reason the selection is made from the finding rather than from a ranking. Holding strength is not "more lifting" in a general sense — it is a specific property that is an advantage for one kind of correction and less suited to another.
The finding it is selected for: a collapsed line
At Edition, PDO threads are used mainly for improving facial lines that have collapsed. That phrase is worth unpacking, because it describes a specific presentation.
A facial contour is a line the eye follows — the edge running from beneath the ear along the jaw, or the boundary between the cheek and the region beneath it. When it is intact, that boundary is continuous and clean. When tissue descends across it, the line breaks: the edge blurs, a step appears where there was a smooth transition, and the contour reads as having lost its shape.
That is a different presentation from a face that has become generally softer or diffusely less defined. A collapsed line is a discrete failure of a boundary, and it is a structural problem — the tissue that was defining that edge is now sitting below it.
The correction is correspondingly structural: engage the displaced tissue, move it back across the line it fell over, and hold it there. This is what firm engagement is for.
Two clarifications belong here.
The first is that this describes the property, not the region. Which part of the face is treated is a separate matter, decided from where the descent actually is; the individual regions have their own pages.
The second is that a collapsed line is not automatically a PDO finding. If the line has collapsed because volume above it has diminished rather than descended, no amount of holding strength addresses it — which is the distinction set out in the page on Skin, Fat, or Retaining Ligament.
How tissue is moved in the intended direction
Holding strength is only useful if it is applied along the right line, and this is where the material stops being the interesting part of the decision.
Tissue that has descended has travelled along a path determined by where it was anchored and where those anchors loosened. The correction runs along that path in reverse. A firm grip applied along the correct vector returns tissue towards a position it previously occupied; the same grip applied along a different vector moves it somewhere it has never been, which produces a face that looks altered rather than restored.
The stronger the engagement, the more this matters. A material that grips firmly executes the design faithfully — including a design that is wrong. Holding strength amplifies the direction decision rather than substituting for it.
Three elements are decided before any thread is placed: where the path runs, in which direction the tissue is moved along it, and where the correction is anchored. How those are designed is set out in the page on thread direction and vector.
Why it is not a default choice
This is the part of the page that matters most, because "strong lifting" reads as a general good and is not one.
Three findings point away from PDO.
Midface volume that has descended. Where the presentation is not a broken line but a volume of soft tissue in the middle of the face sitting lower than it did — deep cheek descent with fullness — the task is repositioning a mass rather than moving an edge. A structure designed to hold volume distributes the work differently, and that is the reason Silhouette Soft exists as a separate option; its cone structure and what it is selected for are covered in its own page.
Where change in the skin itself is part of the aim. Some patients present with descent and with a concern about the quality of the skin over it. Lifting alone addresses the first. Where both are in view, a material selected for its effect on the skin as well as its lifting effect is the better fit, which is what Aptos is used for.
Where holding strength is not the constraint. If the limiting factor is how much the tissue will hold rather than how firmly it can be gripped — a covering with substantially reduced recoil — then a firmer grip does not produce a better result. It produces the same modest result with more force applied, and a higher likelihood of surface irregularity.
The general principle behind all three is that no single thread is the right answer for every face. Which is selected follows from skin elasticity, fat distribution, and the cause of the descent, and that reasoning is set out in the page on how a thread type is chosen.
The trade-off, stated plainly
Patients comparing thread types usually want a single ranking, and there is not one. What there is instead is a set of trade-offs, and PDO sits at a particular point in it.
It grips firmly. That is the property it is chosen for, and it is an advantage where a displaced boundary has to be moved decisively and held.
It holds for the shortest period of the three. Approximately 6 to 8 months, against roughly a year to a year and a half for the other two materials used at Edition. For some patients that is a drawback; for others, particularly those approaching a procedure for the first time and unsure how they will feel about the result, a shorter horizon is not a disadvantage at all.
It is not the material for redistributing volume. Firm engagement moves an edge well. It is not what a structure designed to support and reposition a mass of soft tissue does, and asking it to perform that job produces a correction that is technically executed and not quite right.
It does nothing in particular for the skin. Where the concern includes the quality of the covering rather than only its position, the lifting effect leaves that part of the complaint untouched.
Reading those four together is the whole of the selection logic. A material with the first property, that trade-off in duration, and those two gaps, is the right instrument when the finding is a collapsed line on tissue that will hold a correction — and the wrong one when it is not. There is no version of the decision in which one material is better than the others irrespective of what is being treated.
What it is combined with, and why
PDO is not always used alone, and two kinds of combination come up.
With another thread type. The same patient may receive more than one material where different regions present different findings — a collapsed line in one place and descended volume in another. This is a consequence of designing from findings rather than choosing a product: if the findings differ across the face, the materials can differ too.
With other treatments. Where muscle tension in the lower face is contributing, botulinum toxin at the mouth corners, the chin or the jawline may be considered. Where volume reduction accompanies the descent, collagen boosters may be discussed. Where the concern includes skin firmness, radiofrequency lifting or skin boosters may be considered. Each of these addresses something a thread lift does not, and how they are sequenced is covered in the page on combining a thread lift.
Combination is not an upgrade. It is what happens when the examination finds more than one thing.
What to expect in the weeks after
Recovery does not differ meaningfully by thread type, so this is brief and the detail sits in the aftercare pages.
Swelling and a tight sensation are usual for roughly 3 to 7 days. Bruising varies with skin condition and individual healing. A temporary unevenness or pulling sensation can occur while tissue settles around the threads, and this usually improves within one to two weeks.
Most patients return to work and ordinary daily activity from the following day. Washing the face and light make-up are possible from the next day, with care around the treated area. Vigorous exercise and alcohol are generally avoided for around two weeks, and saunas from about two weeks onward. For the first fortnight, facial massage, strong pressure, and sleeping face-down are best avoided; strong-pressure treatments such as deep manual massage are avoided for at least three months.
Progress is reviewed at around one month, when the lifting effect and the state of recovery are checked and any further management is discussed.
Questions patients ask
Is PDO the weakest option because it lasts the shortest time?
No — those are separate properties. PDO is selected for its holding strength, which is a lifting characteristic, not a durability one. It holds for approximately 6 to 8 months, which is shorter than the other two materials, and that is a factor in the discussion rather than a measure of how well it lifts.
What is the difference between Silhouette Fix and Mint?
Both are PDO threads used at Edition for the same category of finding — holding strength applied to a collapsed facial line. Which is used in a given design is a technical selection made from the specifics of the case rather than a choice the patient needs to make.
Can I ask for PDO specifically?
You can raise it, and it is worth saying if you have a reason. But a material chosen before the examination is a constraint on a plan that has not been made yet. The selection follows from what the examination finds — which may or may not be the finding PDO is suited to.
Will I be able to feel the threads?
In the early period some patients notice a sensation of the threads being palpable, along with tightness and slight asymmetry. This can occur as the tissue adapts and settles, and it generally stabilises with time. Where discomfort persists, the state of the area is checked directly rather than waited out.
How many PDO threads will I need?
The average across thread lifting at Edition is around 14, adjusted according to the degree of descent, skin thickness, the amount of fat, facial structure, and the intended direction of lift. The number follows from the design rather than being decided in advance of it.
Can PDO threads be repeated once they have been absorbed?
A repeat procedure is possible and is decided from the state of the tissue at the time rather than on a fixed schedule. What existing or previously placed threads change about a repeat plan is covered in its own page.
About the author
Dae-hee Han, MD — Board-Certified Plastic Surgeon (specialist certificate No. 2045, issued 3 March 2014; medical licence 00394, issued 26 February 2009). Master’s degree, Ajou University School of Medicine. Training at the Craniofacial Center, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taiwan (2013), and the IFAAS Mini Fellowship, University of Florida, USA (2016). Three rhinoplasty papers published in SCIE-indexed international journals. More than 4,500 nose surgeries — Dr. Han’s career total from 2017 to 2025, counted from medical records. Eighteen years in practice since medical licensure in 2009; thirteen years as a board-certified plastic surgeon. He carries out consultation, surgery and follow-up personally; fee guidance is given by the clinic’s consultation manager.
Last reviewed: 2026-08-15
Clinic information
Edition Plastic Surgery Clinic & Dermatology
6F, OPUS 407, 407 Gangnam-daero, Seocho-gu, Seoul 06614, Republic of Korea
One minute on foot from Gangnam Station Exit 10
Tel +82-2-591-0100 · editionprs@gmail.com
Consultation hours: Monday to Friday 10:00–19:00 · Saturday 10:00–17:00 · closed Sundays and public holidays
Disclaimer
Individual results may vary. Bleeding, infection, swelling, asymmetry, and scarring can occur. Please decide after a full consultation with a board-certified specialist.
This page is general medical information. It is not a diagnosis, and it does not promise a particular outcome. Surgical fees are given after an in-person consultation.