Do you have minor skin imperfections that don’t require surgery but still warrant correction? These could include age spots, sun damage, acne scars, or wrinkles, and fine lines. Well, several skin treatments can clear your skin and improve its texture, basically allowing it to feel and look renewed.
Each of the following procedures refreshes the skin without surgery, and they are far less invasive. None of these require any cutting whatsoever. As such, recovery time is usually minimal. They are all affordable and effective, also. That is why they all are seeing recent surges in their overall popularity. Here are just a few of these innovative treatments in detail:
1. Laser Hair Removal
This procedure is gentle and works so well that is becoming incredibly common. It can be safely performed on any part of the body, and though it is usually done on the legs and bikini area, the lasers are certainly mild enough to be used to remove facial hair. Hair loss even becomes permanent for most clients after between three and eight treatments.
Unfortunately, the procedure does work better for those with lighter skin and darker hair. Light skin allows a greater amount of light into each follicle, and if the hair is darker, it absorbs more of that light. And, besides your hair and skin colors, your hair’s thickness, the location and size of the area you want to have treated, and your skin type all also factor into your results.
2. Botox Injections
The bacteria responsible for botulism formulate Botox, which is injected, via an extremely thin needle, into the areas of the face where wrinkles are forming. It eliminates the appearance of these fine lines by temporarily paralyzing the underlying facial muscles and blocking particular nerves. Your doctor will be sure to target the appropriate muscles so the remaining facial skin is unaffected.
These sessions don’t require anesthesia and only take about fifteen minutes. The amount of injections is all dependent on the total number of wrinkles and their severity. The results will last for several months.
3. Dermal Fillers
This treatment employs fillers that are injected into the face with needles. In minimal amounts, they work well filling in deep wrinkles and softening lines and creases. More liberal amounts are added to pump up cheeks and lips, allowing them to appear fuller.
Common dermal fillers include Restylane, hyaluronic acid, synthetic polylactic acid, and calcium hydroxylapatite. Sometimes the doctor will use your fat, too.
Results are immediate and semi-permanent, lasting from six to eighteen months.
4. Dermabrasion
This procedure includes the application of a local anesthetic because it can be quite painful without it. Your doctor will scrub the skin with a wire brush or a specialty device, pseudo-sanding away the top layer of skin, and along with it, imperfections such as deep scar tissue, moles, major sun damage, and set-in wrinkles. The amount of skin removal is completely dependent on the severity of the damage necessitating repair.
More than one treatment may be needed because the skin may need to rest after a session. Side effects can include redness, burning, and swelling.
5. Chemical Peel
This procedure is an alternative method for treating rough skin, freckles, burns, and other skin abnormalities. Rather than sloughing the top layer of skin away with a device, chemical solutions are applied to the skin. The damaged layer is then easily peeled away once the compound dissolves it.
You could get a mild peel using alpha-hydroxy acids, a medium peel that uses trichloroacetic acid, or a deep peel that utilizes phenol. It all depends on how acute your skin issues are.
Light and medium peels work well on acne and fine wrinkles, while deep peels are needed for set-in lines and embedded scars. Deep chemical peels provide exemplary results that may last up to a decade, but recovery time can take quite a while.
6. Microdermabrasion
Like the different variations of chemical peels, dermabrasion has a milder alternative as well. It is referred to as microdermabrasion, and it removes minor skin issues on the outer layer of the skin, such as enlarged pores, blackheads, acne, age spots, discoloration, stretch marks, and minor lines.
Small crystals attached to the tip of a device carefully sand the facial skin in a session that takes approximately a half-hour.
Unfortunately, you will have to undergo several treatments before skin problems start to markedly improve, but you will have no downtime in recovery. Results are dependent on the amount of damage and the number of sessions completed.
7. Laser Skin Resurfacing
Short, pulsating laser light beams are used in this process to even out skin tone, diminish age spots, eliminate minor scarring, and treat lines and wrinkles. It does this by removing the top layer of skin, but unlike other procedures on this list, it also heats the lower layers of the dermis and consequently stimulates the production of collagen. Collagen firms skin and makes it appear smooth and youthful.
Deep scars and wrinkles are targeted by the ablative laser while the mon-ablative alternative zeroes in on the less obvious signs of aging. The ablative laser produces quick results with longer downtime, while the latter decreases discomfort and speeds up recovery, though more sessions will be needed to get the same results.
Most of the time results after treatment will be long-lasting. Just know that you will become extra-sensitive to sunlight and will need to take proper precautions.
In conclusion, the following skin treatments will keep you looking young, beautiful, fresh, and nearly flawless. If you are looking for alternatives to surgery that guarantee results, schedule a consultation with us at Buckingham Center for Facial Plastic Surgery to discuss any of these options in greater detail.
