Whats the Skin tightening buzz about? What is the science behind it and why should one get it?

Aging brings about tremendous changes to the quality of skin, be it inelasticity, loss of volume and pigmentation to name a few. The most noticeable aspects of inelastic skin is the appearance of wrinkles, which grow deeper every year if unchecked. But the loss of elasticity goes beyond that. It can affect our skin texture and can even profoundly change the contours of the face. This causes sagging of skin especially over face and neck leading to jowls, turkey neck, etc. The younger skin has several strong collagen and elastin supporting bands. These bands weaken over the years due to the various factors; mainly due to UV damage from sun exposure ( Yes! Sunblocks offer protection and reduce the UV damage to skin) and reduced collagen formation due to aging physiology.

Traditionally the only options available to lift and tighten the aging skin were invasive or surgical. The good news is that there are now many minimally-invasive skin tightening treatments that can be performed to improve and effectively reverse engineer aging changes. Here are some of the popular options available.

1. Radio-frequency Skin tightening Radio-frequency waves are electromagnetic waves like the light waves, used to bulk heat the layers of skin to bring about collagen shrinkage and eventually collagen synthesis.It is also suitable to treat stretch marks and cellulite. Depending on the device and delivery the intensity of skin tightening varies. The RF energy can be combined with HIFU, Infrared, shockwaves, magnetic field or lasers to deliver hybrid energy based treatments (Example: Polaris, Velasmooth, Aurora). Several devices like the Venus Legacy, Thermage, ENDYMED, Elixis, Unison, Vanquish, Syneron Matrix and ePrime, Accent RF use stand alone RF energy for skin tightening.

RF Skin tightening : Before (left) and After(Right)

1. High Intensity Focus ultrasound(HIFU) and Microfocus Ultrasound (MFU) Using sound waves to heat up the different layers of the skin, results in inflammation and collagen production. The ultrasound energy penetrates deeper than the RF waves resulting in targetted shrinkage of the deep fibrous tissues in the skin. Ultherapy, Ulthera, ULFIT, Ultraform, Sygmalift are a few devices that use Ultrasound for firming and lifting.
2. Laser Skin Toning Different lasers like the Diode laser and NdYAG Long pulse lasers have been used to rejuvenate and tighten the skin. The laser energy is a light type energy that penetrates up to 1.5mm from the surface, this limits the collagen shrinkage and production in the deeper layers of the skin. Example: Sculpsure, Fotona Dynamis.
3. Infra-red skin tightening Infra-red waves are electromagnetic waves that are part of the sun rays. The device produces IR rays that penetrate the skin and cause bulk heating to bring about collagen shrinkage. Example: Cutera Titan.
4. Other devices use different energy types like microwave, Intense Pulse Light(IPL)/Broad based light to achieve skin tightening.
5. Thread lift The use of threads has revolutionised the aesthetic industry. There are several type of threads in the market that promise skin lifting and collagen formation. Thread lift is useful for skin that’s not excessively sun damaged. This delivers an instant result and progressively improves the skin quality over the months to follow. Silhouette Soft (PLLA) threads and Happylift threads (PCLA+PLLA) are bio-stimulators, and effectively remodel the skin. PDO threads or Korean threads are mainly used to lift the skin mechanically.

What to expect?

Most of the skin tightening treatments have no downtime. The results improve with repeat treatments and improve overall skin quality for years to come. Most energy based treatments have little(bruise, redness, minor swelling) to no side effects.