Beauty Advice from Dermatologists

Featured Dermatologists

Dr. Jeffrey S. Dover Jeff Dover, M.D.

Walt Larsen, M.D. Walt Larsen, M.D.

Marta Rendon, M.D. Marta Rendon, M.D.

Helen Torok, M.D. Helen Torok, M.D.

Cosmetic Procedures

Cosmetic Procedures fall in a number of groups depending on their scope. Most of the procedures described here are non-invasive and can be performed on an outpatient basis. Check with your dermatologist for more information. These pages describe the different skin procedures, as well as information on the physicians who perform them.

Wrinkle and crease treatments fall into several categories, and one technique may be more useful than another depending on your particular needs and your doctor's recommendations.

Botox has become famous as a medication, and there are many advantages to its use. Learn about how Botox works and how to make the skin less prone to creasing and wrinkling.

Dermal fillers are gel-like materials that are injected into unwanted folds, creases, and wrinkles. There are different kinds of dermal fillers. We discuss three in detail here. Restylane, a non-surgical procedure, is injected into the skin. Juvederm is specially designed to augment soft skin and therefore treat aging skin. Radiesse is a long-lasting filler that is used to treat many parts of the face.

For problems with sagging skin, The Contour Thread Facelift is a minimally invasive alternative to traditional face-lifts. It offers some significant adantages over the latter, including the abiliy to change how much the lift the threads provide.

Related to the face-lift, but with no invasive procedures, Tissue Tightening is a painless, non-invasive procedure aimed at tightening sagging skin. It is often used in conjunction with one of the above other techniques to enhance the skin.

An alternative set of treatments, whose goal is to rejuvenate the skin, use physical or chemical methods of removing the top layer of the dermis. Chemical Peels are exfoliators that produce a controlled peeling of the skin. But did you know that chemical peels work also below the skin? Learn about how both glycolic as well as hydroxy acids work. These peels will also help with acne scars.

Dermabrasion is by contrast, a physical peeling mechanism that uses abrasives to clear the skin. It can also be used to decrease scars. There are side-effects with this approach wich you can learn about in this section.

Related to dermabrasion is Microdermabrasion: a non-chemical and non-invasive procedure that removes the outermost layer of skin. Microdermabrasion is specially suited for estimulating the development of skin cells containing higher levels of collagen and elastin, hence improving the appearance of the skin.

The last group of treatments, grouped together because they use light, are photo-treatments. Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) Photofacials are skin rejuvenation treatments based on the ability of light to treat such symptoms as redness and flushing. They are also effective in treating sun damage and aging.

Lasers are a novel approach to treating many different skin problems. There are several different types of laser systems in use, and each one is especially designed to treat a specific group of skin conditions. Here we discuss Laser skin resurfacing, Fraxels, and Scitons.

Laser Tattoo Removal is a special niche for certain phototreatments.

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