Three ways physicians can treat facial aging with

Throug hreduction or making the skin fit, augmentation (stretching the skin back to normal) or a combination of the two. When it comes to choosing a rejuvenation procedure; the severity of the facial aging must be considered. Wrinkles (individual fine or deep rhytids) are managed well by Botox or injectable fillers. Although other agents are touted to produce similar results, Botox is currently unsurpassed in its ability to soften or eliminate wrinkles caused directly by the action of underlying muscles of facial animation. For wrinkles that may not be contributed to directly by facial movement or for depressed scars; superficial or deep fillers (ranging from collagen, hyaluronic acid and poly-L-lactic acid to silicone particles and bone cement and even your own injected fat). These can also be used for wrinkles, scars, and soft tissue augmentation most commnly lip augmentation. When you have wrinkles involving larger areas or if it's related to sun-damage, the underlying problem commonly lies in the biological changes in the skin itself. Here, rejuvenation methods such as laser resurfacing, microdermabrasion, and chemical peels act to restore some of the lost intrinsic biologic properties of the skin and can provide a significant restorative change over these large areas. These treatments use light associated heat, physical sanding, or chemicals, respectively, to remove the surface layers of the skin and hence stimulate a regenerative-like process. Many common skin creams advertised to improve facial wrinkles contain glycolic or other acids used in light chemical peels to help improve the taughtness of your treated skin. As the severity of skin aging increases, injection and resurfacing procedures may be combined themselves or with surgical rejuvenation. Surgical management of more severe forms of facial aging can be through an additive (implants), reductive (excisions or tucks), or combined approach. Modern rhinoplasties (nosejobs) are a good example where combined approaches of reduction by excision and augmentation through cartilage grafting are employed. As these procedures typically address changes in the three-dimensional volume and in the skin (envelope or cover) they obviously provide the greatest extent of rejuvenation and can address the greatest degrees of facial change. That said, they do come with a limited amount of scaring and possibly some temporary numbness. Often these scars, created in lines of election, are fine and highly acceptable with some rare exceptions. Topical tretinoin and tazarotene can improve fine lines and the general appearance of the skin. The down-side is that you need to continue to use these topical treatments in order to maintain its effect. Sometimes, tretinoin and tazarotene can be combined with the procedures listed above to enhance the effects.