2010 Combo Treatments are Hot!

Everywhere I turned this weekend, it seemed I read another article about using combinations of treatments for aging, sun damaged skin. It started Friday with the delivery of the June issue of Dermatologic Surgery Journal. An excellent and very comprehensive review article, “Recent Advances in Combination Treatments for Photoaging: Review of the Literature”, compiled the information from a multitude of scientific studies confirming that the best results are arrived by numerous treatments of various types when using a “knife free” and “minimal down time" approach. As always, the maintenance of the improvement from these treatments has to be good home care, health and sun habits. Basically, this isn’t new information but one is always searching for the magic, one time, do it all, treatment. Some examples of these combo’s are:
1. Botox/Dysport & fillers.
2. Botox/Dysport, laser resurfacing & fillers.
3. Fractionated CO2 laser resurfacing & chemical peels or microderm & pulsed dye lasers.
4. Thermage skin tightening & fillers &/or fractionated CO2 laser resurfacing, liposuction & Thermage.

In my 30 plus years of Dermatology, many of these treatments have singly risen to the top in popularity and evolved in technique and effectiveness. Then they were sidelined as another came into the lime light. Now the combinations appear to be the best choice for help with slowing down the birthday fairy’s assaults. Even with face, neck and eye lid lifts, the texture and color of the overlying skin still needs addressed (kind of like car detailing or hair color along with the cut).
Soooooo regular, multiple types of treatments are available to keep the “factory” of skin cells busy.

Dr. Ann

P.S. I really enjoy sharing these “treats” with my patients.

Don't Let The Sun Damage Your Skin Like It Does Your Furniture!

There is nothing to compare with the beauty of the Rocky Mountains! I was able to spend the Memorial Day holiday gazing through the two story windows of a Colorado cabin and the incredible bright morning sun peaking over the mountains onto the upholstered furniture and the blue to now grey rug. If this is what can happen through window glass over time, no wonder my “thirty something” skin is showing some of the same changes. My own upholstery is weathering with crinkles and irregular coloring from the unprotected outdoor sun exposure coming in through the window glass. You just have to look at this cabin’s décor or remember some areas in your “growing up” home to get the picture. Think about the webbing of our past aluminum outdoor chairs and recliners. I spent many hours reweaving new webbing to replace the disintegrated and old webbing. And then there is the issue of the paint and wood deterioration around the windows. OK, you get the point!! None of us are ready to go back to pioneer dress (but weren’t they smart with long sleeves and hats?). We can now use our much improved sun protection lotions but if you see any skin color change, this is a sign of CELL DAMAGE, not health.

I am going to list the websites of some of the companies that make light weight, easy to wear, sun protective clothing. I have personal experience with the Solumbra line from the Sun Precautions Company as they were one of the first to provide me with a big white shirt that I could wear over my hiking, biking, gardening and outdoor marketing clothes. It reminds me that my grandmother would wear Uncle Glen’s long sleeve shirt when she was gardening or chasing chickens. She also wore a big hat, which was embarrassing to me if my friends saw her. I grew up in Western Nebraska where the migrant beet workers wore big hats and long sleeves out in the field as they worked all day in the sun. The beet workers, my grandmother, the people who take siestas, those using parasols or umbrellas, those that wear foreign legion type head protection or sun bonnets are more in the skin health & beauty groove then we are.

Please take a minute to “checkout” these websites. Even if you would pick only one item to wear, you could add yourself to the role modeling we are now seeing from our movie stars. Undamaged skin, no matter what your “tone”, is a sign of health and beauty.

Dr. Ann

www.sunprecautions.com
www.coolibar.com
www.sundayafternoons.com
www.tilley.com
www.blogwear.com

Seeking Imperfection

An interesting follow up to my last blog was presented in a somewhat different light on the April 29th Early Show. While the “less is more” philosophy is being discussed more and more in my recent literature and professional meeting, the casting directors are apparently of the same mind. In the piece titled: Hollywood Seeks New Perfection: Imperfection, they are looking for natural faces and bodies such as Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts. Bradley Jacobs, U.S. Weekly editor, who was interviewed on the program stated “What’s interesting is, for women who are a little bit older, maybe 40 plus working in the business, people sort of do expect them to get a little work done; but it needs to not be obvious. We need to not be able to tell, so there’s a difference between good plastic surgery and bad plastic surgery once you get past a certain age.” This is the request I hear repeatedly from my patients “I don’t want fish lips or huge cheeks, just soften the edges.”

The baby steps philosophy at CDLC is happily meeting those requests. I don’t care for the fish lips look either.

Dr. Ann