Wrinkles and Fine Lines

The Science

Wrinkles and fine lines start appearing for a variety of reasons (and at a variety of ages), primarily related to the natural degradation of collagen. Combined with UV exposure and other external elements (stress, gravity, hormones, or smoking), skin will slowly lose this essential structural building block.

Dynamic lines form in response to repetitive muscle movement, like frowning, squinting, and smiling. Eventually these dynamic lines evolve into static ones that don’t fade, even when the muscle isn’t engaged. The depth and severity of these lines depend on the thickness of a given area of skin. For example, the skin around your eyes is one of the most delicate and sensitive regions, and therefore one of the first places to exhibit fine lines.

Our Approach

The tried and true method of treating fine lines and wrinkles is to relax the muscles creating them. This requires an expert hand in knowing where to inject: “Too much Botox^® can extinguish facial movement and expression,” warns Dr. Patricia Wexler. That’s why we encourage patients to use toxins in combination with other solutions. Depending on the depth of the wrinkles, we may use fillers to restore lost volume at the level of the bone. Tightening the skin through Ultherapy^® or ThermiSmooth^® can also reduce the appearance of wrinkles while still allowing a full range of expressions. For more shallow wrinkles, we use chemical peels. CoolTouch 3 Plus™ and DermaSweep to address fine lines by stimulating collagen production.