Best Way to Use Minor Cosmetic Procedures to Eradicate Wrinkles and Blemishes

If you want to take your anti-ageing mission a step further than just using a facial serum, there is now an increasing number of minor cosmetic procedures which can help you to eradicate wrinkles and blemishes.

Whether you’ve got wrinkles or birthmarks, or simply want pouting lips and baby-smooth skin, there is now a whole host of state-of-the-art procedures, including dermal fillers, facial implants and various methods of skin resurfacing available. These procedures are not as invasive, nor do they carry the same level of risk and discomfort or the lengthy recovery time, as the more complex cosmetic surgery. Nonetheless, they must all be carried out by a reputable dermatologist or plastic surgeon, otherwise you could run the risk of incurring skin sensitivity, allergic reactions, infection, burns, uneven pigmentation or even, in the worst-case scenario, facial disfigurement. Professor Nicholas Lowe, consultant dermatologist and clinical professor at the University of California at Los Angeles, is one of the world’s leading dermatologists; he gives his advice throughout.

Cosmetic procedures

Dermal fillers

Dermal fillers treat lower facial lines and pitted acne scars and are also used for reshaping lips and plumping up hollow cheeks. Silicone was the first substance used but, as Professor Lowe explains: ‘Due to risk of hardening, ulceration and an impossibility to remove, its use as a filler has become extremely limited.’ Silicone was superseded by purified bovine collagen. ‘Collagen has continued to be a mainstay dermal filler.’ says Professor Lowe, ‘although the results are only temporary, lasting between six and eighteen months, depending on the age and skin condition of the individual! Because collagen carries a three per cent risk of inducing an allergy, dermatologists ought to perform a double patch test before administering it.

Other temporary fillers include Hylaform gel – a non-allergenic, synthetic substance that has both similar uses and results to collagen – and autologous lipotransfer, in which the patient’s own fat is taken by means of painless liposuction from the stomach, hips, thighs, neck or lower face. ‘With autologous fat fillers, we harvest the fat then, using microcanulas syringes, redeposit some of it into the face to fill in lines and hollow areas. The rest of the fat is frozen for future sessions,’ explains Professor Lowe. He continues: ‘As the process usually requires four to six injections given over several months, it’s a lengthy procedure, but the benefits are long term, with sixty per cent of the fat remaining!

Facial implants

The first facial-implant filler was Gore-Tex. ‘We implant this biologically compatible membrane by threading it under the skin,’ explains Professor Lowe. The most exciting and most recent implant is Softform. Developed by plastic surgeons at UCSF, this synthetic implant, which is made of expanded polytetrafluoroethylene, is a permanent solution. ‘Softform is shaped into hollow tubes that feel natural when implanted,’ says Professor Lowe. ‘It also has the enormous advantage of being permanent yet, unlike Gore-Tex, dermis does not grow across the implant, so it can easily be removed.’ The best sites for facial implants include the lips, the naso-labial folds, forehead furrows, marionette lines and crease lines on the chin. Any swelling and bruising, along with small sutures – stitches around the area where the Softform has been implanted -usually disappear within five days.

Botox

The bacteria toxin botulinum, most widely known as botox, has been used medically for years to treat stroke patients and people with eye twitches and squints. In the past few years, however, it has also become a fashionable line reducer, which is used to treat facial lines caused by the action of muscles. ‘We inject a tiny amount of botox into the glabellar furrow [the crease between the eyebrows], which relaxes and immobilises the muscle, thus smoothing out lines and preventing further frowning,’ says Professor Lowe. The process needs to be repeated three times within the first year, and then as often as necessary. Botox is also successful for smoothing out crow’s-feet.

Liposculpture for the face

Liposculpture is a form of liposuction, which is used to remove the fatty deposits that are often to blame for jowls and double chins. ‘Having applied local anaesthesia to the face, we extract the fat using a fine syringe’, says Professor Lowe, who goes on to explain how shortly afterwards the skin tightens back. Patients must expect mild bruising and minor discomfort.

Skin rejuvenation

In the battle against lines and wrinkles, resurfacing areas of the face to reveal new, baby-soft skin has become extremely popular. ‘Resurfacing gives you a new epidermis [top layer of skin],’ explains Professor Lowe. Don’t think that skin resurfacing is as simple as popping into the beauty salon for a facial, however: because the top layer of skin is literally burnt or peeled off, it can cause varying degrees of discomfort. Most physicians tend either to sedate their patients lightly, or to inject them with a local anaesthetic first. In some cases, when the entire face is treated, a general anaesthetic may be advised. The recovery time following skin resurfacing takes at least a week, during which patients must initially expect a sore, red face. After dermabrasion, laser resurfacing or a deep peel, a crust usually forms.

Chemical peels use peeling agents, such as trichloroacetic acid, glycolic acid, phenol or Jessner’s solution, to improve moderate acne scars and reduce lines and wrinkles. ‘The deeper peel is much more severe and involves the use of higher-strength peeling agents. We therefore give patients local anaesthesia and/or sedation,’ says Professor Lowe. The drawbacks associated with deep chemical peels are that they do not penetrate as deep as the laser, and that all patients must wear a sunscreen after surgery, as there is a risk of skin discoloration.

A more drastic, and rather scary-sounding, resurfacing process is dermabrasion, a method in which skin is removed by rotating wire brushes. As this carries a risk of infection and involves a general anaesthetic, there is less demand for this procedure nowadays.

Laser rejuvenation has now eclipsed chemical peels and dermabrasion as the favourite procedure. ‘The new lasers, such as the Ultrapulse CO2 and the Erbium-Yag, provide excellent control and precision, which has made skin resurfacing faster healing and more effective,’ says Professor Lowe, who is at the forefront of laser research. You could have your entire face resurfaced or else opt for resurfacing such specific zones as the under-eye area.

Moles, birthmarks and brown spots

The removal process for moles, birthmarks and brown spots (caused by sun exposure, ageing, pregnancy or the contraceptive pill) is quite simple, as the affliction can be lasered away with a Q-Switch Ruby laser. Professor Lowe warns, however, that moles should only be removed by a dermatologist or doctor because a beautician is not sufficiently qualified to be able to tell whether a mole is benign or not. ‘I always carry out a biopsy to check if the mole is malignant. If this is the case, the mole must be surgically excised,’ explains Professor Lowe.