3D Skin Rejuvenation

A New Laser and Light Fix for More Flawless Skin

Patients seeking skin rejuvenation these days can be 18-90 years old, female or male, 'skintelligent ' about their treatment options or not. They have different expectations, different budgets and different problems with their skin. What they do often share though, is that they have multiple skin issues, reflecting multiple levels of damage. In my practice, we offer a wide range of services to a wide range of patients. Regardless of their age or consultation focus, everyone wants to be firmer, stay firmer longer, or do whatever they can to prevent facial aging. We always begin by handing the patient a mirror and essentially reading the face together. The various changes may be superficial in nature or have root causes that lie deeper in the dermis. After finding out what bothers them the most, various ways of proceeding are then discussed. In the process, the patient is often pleasantly surprised that more than one issue can be addressed as part of a non-surgical treatment regimen, particularly with the 3D approach.

The latest light technology is now available in Noosa, Ascot, Maroochydore & Kenmore and allows us to take three separate non-ablative procedures that each target different problems (and depths of skin involvement), and use them in various combinations to achieve a full (3D) effect. We are able to develop a treatment plan to each patients own needs and desires that optimises the outcome while still incurring no downtime whatsoever.

So what is photoaging?

Photoaging refers to alterations in the colour and texture of the skin, due to cumulative sun exposure-and unfortunately Queensland boasts more of this damage than any other location in the world. In addition, the collagen in the skin that keeps it taut begins to weaken, and with the pull of gravity the skin becomes lax. 3D light technology addresses each of these three types of changes.

Colour Changes

Over exposure to uv light can cause brown solar lentigines (age spots), sallowness, generalized redness and/or specific tiny, diffuse blood vessels. The Photo Genesis procedure (using LP 560 'intelligent' pulsed light) mitigates and even eliminates these bothersome skin changes, addressing an array of superficial pigment changes induced by the sun that occur in the skin, resulting in a more uniform skin color. For patients who present with mid size vessels, we utilize the vascular settings on the long-pulsed 1064nm Nd:Yag laser.

Texture Changes

The Laser Genesis procedure (using long-pulse Nd:Yag laser with its unique submillisecond pulse capability) addresses the diffuse textural changes associated with aging skin, which occur primarily in the more superficial layer of the dermis. The laser energy stimulates dermal collagen regrowth and alignment so that pore size is reduced, cobblestoning is flattened, and fine lines are minimized. This positive impact on the microtopography of the skin has not been possible until now, unless involving significant down time from more ablative laser procedures.

Gravity Changes

The Titan procedure (using 1100-1800nm infrared handpiece) is an inspired way of treating lax skin. It utilizes infrared light to heat the water in the dermis to the point of collagen contraction. The collagen fibre support matrix not only tightens immediately, but is reinforced over time with integration of new fibroblasts. This not only enhances the noticeable tightening effect but helps to bolster the skin against future aging. Loss of collagen is a key factor in the visible signs of aging, and the more healthy the collagen there is in the dermis the more the skin can maintain a youthful resiliency and texture. The clinical result is skin that not only looks, but feels firmer. Patients do not require anesthesia, and clinical outcomes are well received by patients opting for a non-surgical approach.

Titan has broad appeal. First, the sites that patients most want to have tightened are the face and neck but they usually don't stop there;they often want to "titan" the skin on other body areas as well. For instance, some of our youngest Titan patients are treated for post-pregnancy looseness of abdominal skin. Older patients with inevitable laxity on the buttocks and knees are also suitable candidates. In addition skin can also take on a crepe paper quality as well as droop with time-for instance the" V-neck crinkling" that so many female patients complain about. Titan is a real asset here. Its other unique feature is that because the Titan system is "colour blind" we can treat any skin type, regardless of ethnicity and skin colour. While everyone's skin ages in different ways and at different rates, it ages nonetheless. Virtually everyone benefits from Titan. Eight out of ten patients get noticeable improvement in skin laxity after just their first treatment, and ten out of ten will be putting collagen "in the Bank" for the future. The importance of collagen enhancement cant be overestimated, since the destruction of collagen is at the root of skin aging. Even surgery doesn't impact the mid face too dramatically, yet with Titan we can smooth jowling and crepe paper skin and significantly reduce prominent nasolabial folds.

Each of these three modalities can be used in combination with the others-on different occasions or during the same visit-to create a synergistic effect where the whole is greater then the sum of parts. For instance, improving both texture and tone, or both tautness and texture, produces an overall effect that almost belies the non ablative nature of the procedures. Patients enjoy the rapid, tangible improvement they see in colour, in addition to the more gradual effects of collagen rebuilding. Both younger patients with large pores and older patients with large pores and /or fine wrinkling will benefit over time from the collagen realignment initiated by Laser Genesis as well as the rapid improvement of pigmentation from Photo Genesis If we use more than one light modality in the same treatment, we recommend starting with the deepest reaching procedure and moving towards the most superficial. Thus Titan would proceed Laser Genesis which would proceed Photo Genesis-in this way treatment at one level does not inhibit subsequent targeting beneath it. A series of treatments is still scheduled to leverage the results prior to treatment, and the visits are spaced two weeks apart so the skin can begin healing and remodeling in the interim.

While skin rejuvenation procedures are becoming increasingly familiar to patients, 3D is a distinctive approach now available in Noosa and Ascot. With 3D, we are starting with non ablative procedures that in itself is very appealing but it is made even more so by virtue of the skin problems they address ( tone , texture and tautness) and the relative ease with which they are addressed (no surgery, anaesthesia or downtime). By combining them in an artful and scientific way we are able to achieve a visual impact that is actually greater than the sum of the parts-and hugely satisfying to patients.

3D skin remodeling by Cutera

3D skin remodeling by Cutera is now available at Ascot and includes the latest technology Pearl.

Pearl is a minimally invasive skin technology that renews the skins surface by treating wrinkles, texture age spots and sun damage with fewer treatments and less overall downtime than other technologies.

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Before & After 3D Skin Rejuvenation