These become deeper as we get older, with the cause being a combination of reduction in the elasticity of the skin due to Sun Damage and a loss of volume/fat from the face as we get older. They often become more obvious with rapid weight loss, such as from stress, weight loss through dieting or excessive exercise.
The traditional way of treating these is with Dermal Fillers, the improvement from which is immediate and very effective in the early stages. When the folds get deeper, more filler is required and can the result in an obvious pushed out look reminiscent of an extra from ‘Planet of the Apes’.
Since these are folds due to the skin of the Face moving slightly forward, one of the best treatments for these are the deep Cog Threads. The results are immediate and have proven extremely popular since their introduction in our clinic almost 3 years ago. If the Face is very thin, Sculptra may be the best treatment, but most patients need 3 treatments, with the results here will taking about 6-8 weeks to show. With many of our patients, we now combine Sculptra with Cog Threads, to get even better results.
Our most exciting new treatment would have to be Fat Transfer with Micro-Fat. With the improvement in techniques, down-time has been reduced to about 24hrs.