Everything you need to know before your surgery

Clinical guidelines on facial surgery

Real information about the process, planning, surgery and recovery following your facial surgery. Because you deserve to understand what’s going to happen and why we do things a certain way.

Dr. Javier Gutiérrez All our guides are written by Dr. Javier GutiérrezFacial surgeon and founder of ARQÉA · COMB no. 08-43588

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All Our Articles

A folded German flag on a black surface in soft side light, for patients from Germany considering FFS in Barcelona, Spain
Patient Guides

FFS from Germany: Krankenkasse Coverage, Costs and Surgery in Barcelona, Spain

Reading Time:
8 min
A folded Union Jack on a black surface in soft side light, for UK patients considering FFS in Barcelona, Spain
Patient Guides

FFS in Barcelona, Spain from the UK: Surgery Without the NHS Wait

Reading Time:
8 min
Side profile of a woman in low light, with a thin rim of light along her forehead, nose, chin and neck, the features this guide puts in order of priority.
FFS

Which FFS Procedure First? How to Prioritise on a Limited Budget

Reading Time:
7 min
Bowl of smooth blended soup and a smoothie with a wide straw on a dark table, the kind of meal eaten after orthognathic surgery.
Orthognathic surgery

Diet After Orthognathic Surgery: What to Eat, When and Why

Reading Time:
8 min
Close-up of a woman’s forehead and hairline in soft side light, the area that hairline lowering surgery brings forward.
FFS

Hairline Lowering Surgery: When It Works and When a Hair Transplant Is Better

Reading Time:
5 min
Empty waiting-room chairs in a dim hospital corridor, lit by soft side light, evoking NHS waiting lists for FFS
Patient Guides

FFS on the NHS: What Is Funded, Waiting Times and Your Options

Reading Time:
5 min
3D CT in three views after a chin osteotomy combined with jaw surgery, with titanium fixation plates
Clinical judgement

Genioplasty or Chin Implant? How We Decide Between Your Own Bone and PEEK

Reading Time:
5 min
3D CT side view of a forehead before and after Type III reconstruction, with the anterior wall of the frontal sinus set back
FFS

Type III Forehead Reconstruction: Why Shaving the Brow Is Rarely Enough

Reading Time:
5 min
Two members of the ARQÉA team at the Tibidabo viewpoint, with Barcelona and the Mediterranean behind them
Patient Guides

Travelling to Barcelona for FFS: How Long to Stay and When to Fly Home

Reading Time:
7 min
Dr. Javier Gutiérrez, facial surgeon and founder of ARQÉA Clinic, operating with surgical loupes beside an assistant
Patient Guides

Best FFS Surgeon? 12 Things to Check Yourself

Reading Time:
10 min
Dr. Javier Gutiérrez and an assistant performing facial feminisation surgery in an operating theatre at ARQÉA Clinic
Transparency

Facial Feminisation Surgery Cost in the UK and Europe: 2026 Prices

Reading Time:
11 min
Close-up of a woman's upper lip and the base of her nose, the area treated with lip lift surgery instead of filler
Clinical judgement

The lip you don’t recognise in the mirror: why filler isn’t always the answer

Reading Time:
6 min
Person resting with their face turned away, neck and shoulder in soft dappled light, evoking recovery after facial surgery
Surgery and recovery

FFS Recovery: Swelling, Timeline and When You See the Result

Reading Time:
6 min
Dr. Javier Gutiérrez, facial surgeon and founder of ARQÉA Clinic, with two surgeons during an orthognathic surgery course
Orthognathic surgery

Long face after orthognathic surgery: why it happens and how chin contouring can help

Reading Time:
5 min
Dr. Javier Gutiérrez, founder of ARQÉA Clinic, guiding two surgeons through an orthognathic surgery technique
Orthognathic surgery

Minimally invasive orthognathic surgery: technique and recovery

Reading Time:
6 min
Profile close-up of a man's jaw angle and chin, the facial contours that custom PEEK implants are designed to reshape
Masculinisation

Custom implants: the bad reputation isn’t the implant’s fault, it’s the process

Reading Time:
4 min
Black and white portrait of a bearded man with long hair and a prominent brow ridge, illustrating a pronounced forehead
FFS

The prominent brow: what pneumosinus dilatans is and why it’s sometimes worth treating

Reading Time:
5 min
Side close-up of a woman's eye, brow and nose with natural skin texture, the area the foxy eyes trend seeks to change
Rejuvenation

“Foxy eyes” aren’t surgery: they’re makeup with borrowed genetics

Reading Time:
5 min
Black and white portrait of a man in three-quarter view, side lighting showing the natural asymmetry of his face
Clinical judgement

Symmetry won’t make you more attractive

Reading Time:
5 min
Dr. Javier Gutiérrez operating with loupes and a headlight beside a scrub nurse during facial feminisation surgery
FFS

The upper third: why the forehead matters more than the jaw

Reading Time:
2 min
Portrait of a smiling person with long curly hair and freckles, a face that combines feminine and androgynous features
FFS

Can a face be feminised while keeping androgynous features?

Reading Time:
4 min
Reception hall at IM Clinic Gournay with a curved white desk and staircase, the starting point of a recovery stay
Surgery and recovery

Accommodation and optional services during your recovery

Reading Time:
4 min
Close-up portrait of a man with curly hair, freckles and light stubble, illustrating recovery from orthognathic surgery
Orthognathic surgery

How long orthognathic surgery recovery really takes

Reading Time:
3 min
Monitor showing a 3D point cloud scan of a face, the kind of facial model used for surgical simulation at ARQÉA Clinic
Consultation

3D simulation at ARQÉA: what it’s for (and what it isn’t)

Reading Time:
4 min
Profile of a mature woman's jawline and neck showing skin laxity, the area a deep plane facelift addresses
Rejuvenation

Not all facelifts are equal: what’s behind the deep plane

Reading Time:
6 min
Close-up of a person's forehead, brow ridge and eyes, the area treated in forehead surgery at ARQÉA Clinic
Transparency

Why forehead surgery costs €8,500 at ARQÉA

Reading Time:
3 min
Glass facade of IM Clinic Gournay in Sant Cugat del Vallès, the surgical centre where ARQÉA performs combined surgery
Consultation

Combined surgery: what’s really possible in a single operation

Reading Time:
3 min
Close-up of a forehead, hairline and brow with fine lines, illustrating how forehead surgery is planned case by case
FFS

Not all foreheads are operated on the same way

Reading Time:
6 min
Entrance to IM Clinic Gournay in Sant Cugat del Vallès with palm trees, where in-person ARQÉA consultations take place
Consultation

Your first consultation at ARQÉA: what to ask and what to expect

Reading Time:
7 min
Patient room at IM Clinic Gournay with a hospital bed and large windows onto palm trees, where post-operative care begins
Surgery and recovery

Postoperative follow-up: what happens after surgery at ARQÉA

Reading Time:
10 min
Side view of a woman's neck, chin and collarbone against a dark background, the area treated by tracheal shave surgery
FFS

Tracheal Shave (Adam’s Apple Reduction): Scar, Recovery and Cost

Reading Time:
5 min
Gloved hands at a monitor showing a 3D scan of the jaws and teeth, used to plan orthognathic surgery alongside FFS
Orthognathic surgery

Jaw feminisation and orthognathic surgery: when to combine them and why order matters

Reading Time:
11 min
Three-quarter close-up of a woman's forehead, brows and eyes, the region reshaped in forehead feminisation surgery
FFS

Forehead feminisation: the three approaches (and how to choose)

Reading Time:
5 min
A man and a woman talk on a bouclé sofa at ARQÉA Clinic as she takes notes on a tablet, planning a facial surgery case
Consultation

How we plan your facial surgery: from diagnosis to theatre

Reading Time:
8 min
Operating theatre at IM Clinic Gournay where surgery day takes place, with an operating table and anaesthesia equipment
Surgery and recovery

Surgery day at ARQÉA: protocol, timings and what nobody tells you

Reading Time:
10 min
Woman on a sofa in a dim room reading on a tablet, reviewing what her ARQÉA Clinic surgical quote includes
Transparency

What your quote at ARQÉA includes

Reading Time:
3 min