Aging and Cosmetic Surgery - A Primer

As a Fort Myers cosmetic surgeon who is board certified and a member of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, I receive occasional notices from them that I like to share with my patients ad friends.

This one has to do with the aging process, which can be brutal,. Trying to combat wrinkles and other changes in one's face can be an uphill battle. But, trying to look as good as possible can soothe some of the anxiety that comes with growing older. According to a doctor writing for Inform.com, it's important to know how your face changes at certain ages, and what you can do to treat the issues for you as an individual..

Adolescent years are difficult for many, not just because of skin problems, though acne doesn't make things easier. For a lot of people, the teens are a heyday for healthy skin, with only an occasional pimple.

In one's twenties, skin products that are vitamin A-based, such as retinol, are often recommended . Of course, sunglasses and sun screen are also a must at all ages. An early start means fewer wrinkles as one ages.

Ten years later, many people start to see the first signs of aging. Fine lines commonly appear around the eyes. Skin underneath your lower eyelids may become puffy, particularly in the morning. To fight these signs of aging, one can enhance the face cleansing regimen, adding eye cream and a moisturizer at night. Be sure tor read the ingredients. Look for antioxidants, such as vitamin C or green tea.

This is also the age when some people begin to look into cosmetic procedures, such as Botox, to help combat the signs of aging. These minimally invasive procedures are quite popular, according to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. The ASAPS found that for all women between the ages of 50 and 60, Botox was the number one cosmetic procedure in 2011.

During middle age, often defined as the forties and fifties, fine lines get deeper, particularly around the mouth and eyes, eventually becoming folds in the skin. If you lose weight during this time of life, you may find that skin doesn't rebound as it did at a younger age. It's lost its elasticity, according to the doctor writing for Inform. A tummy tuck can help combat sagging skin left over from the shedding of pounds.

Bone and muscle volume decrease during middle age, which can often result in a tired appearance that can bother some people. At this point, there are other cosmetic procedures that can help with this issue, such as a facelift or browlift. 

In my experience, a good strategy is to start fighting aging early on. People who wait until the aged look is problematic for them, and then undergo facial surgery, may find that the improvements are less natural-looking due to the reduction in elasticity that otherwise helps skin renew its appearance.

As with all generalizations about cosmetic surgery, different patients respond differently to each procedure, surgical or non-surgical. And these general observatins should not be interpreted as specific medical advice. See me persoanally for that.

How do YOU see yourself?

A study of how women perceive themselves when they look in the mirror has revealed interesting  changes in perceptions of facial features as women age. The full findings are published in “Mirror on the Wall: A Study of Women’s Perception of Facial Features as They Age,” appearing in the May issue of Aesthetic Surgery Journal.

With Facial aesthetic treatments among the most popular cosmetic procedures around the world, researches asked hte question, "Why do so many women want to change what they see in the mirror?"

In addition, what do they most like or dislike about their faces? 

A group of Turkish researchers found that: 

1. Among women in their 20s, the nose and skin were what women focused on most and most desired to change, 

2. For women in their 30s and 40s the skin and the area around the eyes (periorbital region) were the main areas of concern. 

3. For women in their 50s, the periorbital region and jawline were the primary facial focal points.

“We wanted to better understand why patients desire to alter their facial features. What is it that leads them to seek so-called perfection?” said lead author Billur Sezgin, MD, of Gazi University in Ankara, Turkey. “We found that many women are not at peace with what they see in the mirror. When women look in the mirror, they primarily focus on the parts of their face they most dislike or desire to change. Not surprisingly, this dissatisfaction is the strongest motivator for seeking facial aesthetic treatments.”

As a cosmetic surgeon practicing in Fort Myers and Cape coral, Florida, I find my patients tend to fit the same interest profile.

“This study is very interesting because it clearly shows that most women tend to compare their appearance to that of younger women,” wrote Foad Nahai, MD, Editor-in-Chief of Aesthetic Surgery Journal. 

According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS), women in the U.S. had nearly 8.4 million cosmetic procedures performed in 2011, a large percentage of which involved the face.