Hand rejuvenation
The skin on your hands – and even more so on the back of your hands – is very fine, almost deprived of fatty tissue, and many small veins run through it. In this area, the tendons and extensor muscles of the fingers are very superficial. Sun exposure, toxins, stress, and the passing of time all contribute to the thinning of the skin on the back of the hands. They also lead to small, unsightly dark spots and accentuate the transparency of the skin, revealing the underlying veins and tendons.
Why Are the Hands So Prone to Ageing?
The hands are especially exposed to various external factors which promote accelerated ageing. The skin on the hands is subject to different signs of ageing, including:
- dark spots;
- finer, more withered skin;
- a loss of density that reveals the veins and tendons on the back of the hands more noticeably.
Lifestyle and daily habits play a major part in skin ageing. As with the face, the hands are exposed to direct sunlight more than any other body part. UVA and UVB radiation from the sun and from artificial sources is responsible for the skin’s photo-ageing and for the emergence of pigmented spots:
- UVA radiation penetrates deeply into the skin all the way to the dermis. UVA radiation not only damages skin cells but destroys the collagen and the elastin which forms the structure of the dermis.
- UVB radiation only penetrates the outer layers of the skin, damaging the epidermis’s DNA.
Signs of photo-ageing appear on the most visible areas of the body: on the face, neck, and back of the hands.
Genetics play an important role in how the skin on the hands ages. The pace at which the dermis gets thinner and loses fat is determined by your genes. Tobacco is also an aggravating factor in wrinkle formation.
How Does Hand Rejuvenation Work?
Often neglected in the daily application of skin care products, the hands can benefit from various acts of cosmetic surgery. Difficult to conceal, the hands tend to betray a patient’s age. This is why the demand for correction is on the rise. Hand rejuvenation gives this area of the body a more youthful appearance through a treatment tailored specifically for every patient. Several techniques of medical and plastic surgery for hand rejuvenation are available to make your hands appear more youthful again. Contrary to the application of skin care products that only provide short-lived results, hand rejuvenation aesthetic medicine and cosmetic surgery offer a deep-acting treatment. Mesotherapy, injections, laser, peel, or lipofilling are among the most widely used hand rejuvenation techniques.
What Are the Best Hand Rejuvenation Techniques?
Doctor Vincent Masson puts three techniques at your disposal for hand rejuvenation in Paris:
- Gentle, superficial chemical peels performed at the doctor’s office;
- Natural, resorbable hyaluronic acid injections performed at the doctor’s office;
- Lipofilling, lipomodelling, or fat transfer, performed as outpatient surgery, with no hospitalisation or general anaesthesia;
Gentle, Superficial Chemical Peels
Chemical peels are a widely used aesthetic medicine technique which restores the appearance of your hands. This hand rejuvenation treatment in Paris is particularly recommended for people who wish to correct certain superficial skin blemishes such as wrinkles and dark spots.
A gentle skin peel uses plant-based or chemical substances to destroy the superficial skin layer known as epidermis. Depending on the goal, it could be more powerful and reach the superficial dermis. When used for skin rejuvenation, a chemical peel gives the skin a smoother aspect by reducing the appearance of skin blemishes, particularly dark spots and wrinkles.
Several types of chemical peels are available:
- fruit acid peels;
- weak acid peels;
- phenol peels;
- TCA acid peels.
Depending on the concentration of acids or phenol, a chemical peel could be gentle, medium-deep, or deep. When consulting your cosmetic surgeon, a clinical exam will reveal the type of peel necessary to treat the area in question.
Gentle, superficial chemical peels for hand rejuvenation are done at the doctor’s office and require no anaesthesia. Since it is just skin exfoliation, the follow-up period is uncomplicated. Several sessions may be scheduled. The doctor will determine how many should take place based on every patient’s individual needs.
Hyaluronic Acid Injections
Hyaluronic acid injections make the hands appear younger by treating the volumes on the back of the hand. It smooths out the wrinkles and fills up the unsightly hollow areas, leaving the hands looking more youthful and plumped.
Hyaluronic acid is a molecule naturally present within the body. It has been used in aesthetic medicine for over 20 years, particularly as a lip or wrinkle filler. It hydrates the skin tissue deeply by keeping the water inside the skin. Resorbable and biodegradable, hyaluronic acid is very well tolerated by almost every skin type.
Hyaluronic acid injections are suitable for anyone wanting to rejuvenate hands that have become thin, emaciated, and wrinkled. They target any loss of volume while rehydrating dry hands, concealing visible veins, and smoothing out fine lines and wrinkles. The action of this dermal filler can last for anywhere between 8 and 24 months.
Skin rejuvenation in Paris with Doctor Vincent Masson begins with a medical interview in order to establish the patient’s medical history, to ascertain that there are no contraindications such as pregnancy, a known allergy to hyaluronic acid, or that the patient is not taking incompatible medication.
The areas that need to undergo hand rejuvenation are disinfected prior to the injection. Hyaluronic acid is injected using micro needles or micro cannulas over a single session at the doctor’s office. After a hyaluronic acid injection, it is strongly recommended to avoid sun exposure altogether for 2 weeks.
Lipofilling, lipomodelling, or fat transfer
Lipofilling is a cosmetic surgery technique which consists in extracting fat from one area of the body in order to reinject it elsewhere. For hand rejuvenation, fat is therefore reinjected into the area to help it regain its volume.
The fat can be extracted from various places: the buttocks, the outer thighs, the hips, the sides, the love handles, the belly, the abdomen, the knees, etc. Before being reinjected for hand rejuvenation in Paris, the fat is purified through gentle centrifugation. This step ensures that only fat cells are used by removing any unnecessary cellular debris such as oil or blood.
The correction needed will be assessed through a clinical exam which will allow the doctor to determine a treatment plan. The intervention is performed as an outpatient surgery or requires a one-night stay in the hospital. Permanent and natural, adipocyte grafts for hand rejuvenation do not lead to very painful post-operational effects.
Laser
Laser treatment may be used for hand rejuvenation and provides long-lasting results against age spots. The laser also offers a tightening effect which dampens the appearance of wrinkles on the back of the hands.
This type of treatment may require 1 to 2 sessions over several weeks. Laser treatment is effective in both men and women but may vary based on skin type. Depending on the intensity of the laser and on the lesions undergoing treatment, the effect can be painful. It manifests itself as a small tingling sensation which goes away at the end of the procedure.
With hand rejuvenation, the results may take more or less time to be noticeable depending on the technique used. A preliminary consultation will be necessary in order to determine the most suitable form of treatment.