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Ever since the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) approved Botox Cosmetic for aesthetic uses, the popularity of Botox in the United States and abroad to fight wrinkles has been on an exponential rise. Today, Botox has almost become a necessity in beauty upkeep that both women and men are comfortable telling their friends and family they had a Botox injection done.

The most popular aesthetic use of Botox is to create a combination brow and eyelift by injecting into strategic locations of the face. The eyes take on a pleasing almond-shape and the whole face seems rejuvenated. Botox is normally injected on the forehead and the sides of the eyes (crow’s feet). Men and women of varying ethnicities have been treated with Botox. Because Botox works only on the underlying muscles, it has no effect on skin color.

High quality Botox has longer lasting effect. The effect of the injection should last around four full months although full muscle activity may not be returned until five to six months post-procedure. If the effects of your Botox procedure begin to wear off before four  months, it is in your best interest to make inquiries about the dilution practices of your Botox specialist and how long ago the Botox was mixed and prepared.

None of the wrinkle reduction topical creams that you see advertised on TV and in magazines live up to Botox. The proof is in the data as Botox Cosmetic was the most popular physician-administered cosmetic procedure in the United States for the fifth year in a row with nearly 3.2 million treatments in 2006 and it seems that more and more patients are combining Botox with other aesthetic procedures such as laser skin firming, IPL skin rejuvenation, or skin resurfacing for more pronounced results.

Only licensed and trained healthcare professionals have the experience and qualifications necessary to administer Botox. So before you book your appointment make sure you are being treated by a licensed healthcare professional.

Katy Issa

Senior Aesthetician

Aura Laser Skin Care

In the past seven to eight years there has been an increased demand for noninvasive methods for hair removal. This need has led to the development of various laser and light sources for hair removal. Today there are different laser/light technologies that can perform hair removal which I will be outlining in more details in upcoming posts.  

The term “hair removal” is a vague one and has only been defined recently. Temporary hair reduction is defined as a delay in hair growth, which usually lasts 1-3 months, consistent with the induction of telogen. Permanent hair reduction refers to a significant reduction in the number of terminal hairs after a given treatment, which is stable for a period of time longer than the complete growth cycle of hair follicles at the given body site.

Permanent and complete hair loss are two different results. Complete hair loss refers to a lack of regrowing hairs (ie, a significant reduction in the number of regrowing hairs to zero). Complete hair loss may be either temporary or permanent.  In general, a laser treatment usually produces complete but temporary hair loss for 1-3 months, followed by partial but permanent hair loss. Histological observations show damage predominantly in hair follicles with large, pigmented shafts, while hair follicles with small (<25 mm), hypopigmented shafts do not demonstrate any morphological change.

When you consider laser hair removal, your expectations and goals can be very different for you as opposed to someone else (eg, temporary vs permanent, partial vs complete hair removal). All responses are clinically significant and are generally desirable to different people. Growth delay that provides a few months of hairless skin is far more reliable although in some cases hairless skin is achieved.

Katy Issa

Senior Aesthetician

Wrinkles used to promote wisdom but in the last couple of decades people have started frowning upon them. In recent years treating wrinkles have advanced far beyond the over the counter facial cream that your local drug store used to carry. Today many products and procedures promise to reduce wrinkles. Some do little or nothing (like the products that claim they reduce “the appearance of fine lines,” which means that they don’t reduce the lines themselves). Others can achieve a fair amount of success.

With the constant exposure to the sun and elements, add to that our diet and hormonal changes in the body, such factors do contribute to the dryness, roughness, sagginess, and skin growths like keratoses as well as wrinkles.

Most wrinkles appear on the parts of the body where sun exposure is greatest. These especially include the face, neck, the backs of the hands, and the tops of the forearms. Wrinkles come in two categories: fine surface lines and deep furrows. Wrinkle treatments are in general much more effective for fine lines. Deeper creases may require more aggressive techniques, such injection of fillers or plastic surgery.

Factors that promote wrinkling include: Alcohol consumption, smoking, sun damage especially in the lighter skin type, heredity (some families wrinkle more than others), hairstyle (some styles provide cover and protection against sun damage), dress (hats, long sleeves, etc.), occupational and recreational habits (Sailing, golfing, farming, using tanning booths, and so forth)

For the majority of the factors above we are almost out of control. The only factors we are able to minimize or take measures against are smoking, alcohol consumption, and exposure to the sun.

SPF numbers on sunscreen labels refer to protection against UVB radiation (shortwave ultraviolet light, the “sunburn rays”). More and more sunscreens offer protection against UVA radiation (longer-wave ultraviolet light) as well. UVA rays are the ones you get in tanning salons; they may not cause immediate sunburn but do promote sun damage and skin cancer risk over time. (Sorry, but there is no such thing as a “safe tan.”) Sunscreens that block UVA indicate this on the label and include such ingredients as Parsol 1789. The FDA has recently approved Mexoryl, another UVA-blocking ingredient, which has been available in Europe for quite some time.

Wrinkles can be treated or prevented using topical treatments or cosmetic procedures or a combination of the two:

Topical treatments can include any one of the following: Ordinary moisturizers, vitamin A Acid (tretinoin, Retin-A, Renova), alpha-hydroxy acids, and antioxidants.

Cosmetic procedures can include the following: Glycolic acid peels, deeper peels, microdermabrasion, non-ablative laser rejuvenation, laser resurfacing, fractional resurfacing, Botox, fillers, and finally plastic surgical procedures.

A consult with a skin care specialist is always recommended in order to assess your skin condition and recommend the appropriate treatment and the in-home care.

Katy Issa

Senior Aesthetician - Aura Laser Skin Care