Light Touch Blog

skin tightening and contouring with thermage

January 24, 2012 | James McDougal

Anti-aging cosmetics and creams are just about everywhere you look these days, making wrinkles seem as unpopular and unwelcome as public enemy number one. Although you may still feel young and continue to maintain a high level of energy, the appearance of saggy skin and fine wrinkles can reveal your age and may even make you look older than your years.

The layers of your skin contain a protein known as collagen. This substance is responsible for helping to keep your skin looking tight and youthful. As you age, the collagen in your skin tends to break down faster than your body can rebuild it, causing your skin to lose resiliency and increasing the risk of sagging and wrinkling. While there are many cosmetic and surgical therapies that help minimize wrinkles, many can’t hold a candle to Thermage, a type of tightening treatment that uses radio frequency and requires no downtime.

Thermage helps take the slackness out of your skin by tightening the collagen fibers in the subcutaneous tissues and the dermis layer of skin. It also helps encourage your body to produce new collagen. Thermage incorporates the use of a unique type of radiofrequency technology that reaches deep beneath the surface of the skin, creating heat at optimal depths. While it heats the deeper tissues, Thermage also works to cool the upper layer of your skin, keeping the visible surface safe and protected. This cooling action helps to eliminate the recovery time, a factor that often plays a major role in other types of skin tightening treatments that rely on heat to warm the superficial layers. This results in a virtually non-invasive procedure that allows you to quickly resume your regular activities and go about your daily routine.

The initial results from your Thermage treatment may be noticed immediately, due to the instant tightening of the underlying collagen structures. Since the heat stimulates your skin to produce additional collagen, you will continue to notice improvements to your skin texture, resulting in a surface that appears more youthful and resilient. The most common locations for Thermage treatments include the area around the eyes, the jawline, chin, and cheek areas. Thermage also works on various areas of your body that contain loose, saggy skin, such as your knees, arms, legs, and abdomen.  Eyes by Thermage focuses on treating fine lines and hooding around the eye area, while Body by Thermage can help soften the wrinkles above the knees, smooth the skin over the tummy and create a firmer appearance over specific problem areas.

Although Thermage helps to create a smoother, tauter skin surface, it can’t stop the clock or keep your skin from continuing to age. Many patients choose to have subsequent Thermage sessions every six to 12 months. These repeat visits serve to provide optimal results, helping to keep your skin looking as vibrant and youthful as you feel.

 

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sclerotherapy for leg veins

January 13, 2012 | James McDougal

The unattractive appearance of varicose veins and spider veins can make you want to keep your legs hidden from view, even during the steamy days of summer. Unsightly leg veins are often due to hereditary factors, although pregnancy, hormones, and certain occupations may increase your risk of developing these visible vein conditions. You may notice varicose veins as early as your teen years, although they usually become more obvious during your middle adult years. Both men and women can experience spider veins and varicose veins.

Sclerotherapy provides a beneficial method of reducing the visibility of unsightly veins, restoring a smoother, more even appearance to the skin of your legs. Sclerotherapy is a medical procedure that helps eliminate the obvious bulging and discoloration caused by varicose and spider veins. During the procedure, a very fine needle is used to direct a special solution directly into the problem veins. The solution serves to irritate the lining of the treated vein, causing the inner tissues to swell and adhere to one another. This action causes the blood to reroute through other vessels, taking pressure off the visible vein. In time, the treated vein fades from view, leaving your skin smoother and more even than before.

Most people tolerate this type of treatment quite well and experience very little discomfort during the procedure, although some report experiencing a cramping sensation that may last up to a couple of minutes, especially when receiving injections in larger veins. After the sclerotherapy procedure, you may feel some lumpiness or hardness in larger injected veins, although this generally resolves within several months. You may also notice some slight bruising around the injection site that gradually fades over the next few days or weeks. Directly after the injection procedure, you will be required to put on compression stockings. These help provide the necessary support for the 24-hour period immediately following the procedure. You will also need to wear the stockings periodically throughout the next couple of weeks.

Your initial consultation at Light Touch Medical Aesthetics can help you determine what to expect from a sclerotherapy treatment and can provide answers to any questions you may have regarding this procedure. You may require two or more sclerotherapy sessions to obtain the desired results. It is important to refrain from strenuous activities for approximately two weeks following this type of procedure. Occasional touch-ups or subsequent complete treatments may be necessary to keep your legs looking their best. Some people find that they require additional injections every few years.

If varicose veins and spider veins cause embarrassment, sclerotherapy may provide just the solution you have been waiting for to help you shed those long, cumbersome pants and get your legs back in the public view.

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levulan treatment for acne

January 4, 2012 | James McDougal

 Acne is a common skin condition that can affect people of all ages, often causing inflammation, scarring and embarrassment well into the adult years and beyond. In fact, according to the American Academy of Dermatology, the number of adults who experience acne is increasing. Although proper skincare can help boost the appearance of your complexion and may even play a role in reducing and preventing some acne breakouts, those annoying pimples and pustules are often caused by hereditary factors and other situations beyond your control.

Caring for acne-prone skin can seem overwhelming, especially when numerous medications and treatments fail to deliver promised results, sometimes even causing excessive dryness, redness, and flaking. Without proper treatment, acne can cause your skin to develop dark spots and permanent scarring. Ridding your skin of acne lesions may help boost your self-esteem and restore your clear skin confidence.

Light Touch Medical Aesthetics offers acne sufferers a type of acne resolution that incorporates a two-part treatment that focuses on clearing your pores by reducing the cause of acne breakouts. Levulan® Kerastick® is a type of acne treatment that combines a topical solution with a blue light illumination. During the treatment session, the solution is applied to areas of affected skin. Common areas of treatment include the face, chest, and back.  The solution is allowed to remain on your skin for approximately 45 minutes. The second step of the treatment involves wearing protective goggles while you relax under the BLU-U® photodynamic therapy light. The light treatment phase of this therapy serves to activate the Levulan® solution, destroying the bacteria responsible for causing acne and helping to minimize the production of excess sebum. This trendy type of treatment helps zap acne at its source by slowing down overactive oil glands that tend to clog pores and increase the risk of developing unsightly pustules and pimples.

The number of Levulan® treatments required to produce clear, smooth skin may vary, depending on your individual skin condition, although many acne sufferers notice results with as few as one to three Levulan® treatments. The treatments are typically performed four weeks apart, usually beginning with two initial treatments. Following the first two sessions, your skin may require subsequent treatments or maintenance sessions to produce and maintain the optimal results you desire.

Levulan® therapy may help you avoid resorting to harsh products and unpleasant medications, such as Accutane. Even people with stubborn and severe acne, such as cystic acne, frequently find relief with the help of Levulan® treatments. This innovative acne therapy may be just the resolution you have been waiting for to help clear and clarify your complexion by eradicating embarrassing acne. 
 

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