BOTOX®, Fillers, and Facelifts: Three “Gravity-Defying” Cosmetic Approaches

Skin, like everything else impacted by gravity, eventually “goes south!” By the time people reach their late 30s, the general quality of their skin will have diminished, causing it to be thinner and weaker than it was in their youth. Adults—and even teens and children—can take steps to avoid sun damage and protect their skin in other ways, but the effects of gravity are unstoppable. The dermatology experts at the Philadelphia area’s Cirillo Institute explain that even if we can’t avoid gravity, we can counter its effects.

Dermal fillers are prescription substances that serve to replace or act as a substitute for important elements lost in the skin due to aging. They help to soften wrinkles, to elevate drooping skin, and to improve the overall structure of the face. BOTOX® is also beneficial for temporarily addressing age-related changes such as forehead frown and horizontal lines and “crow’s feet” around the eyes. For patients wanting a more dramatic result and longer-lasting results, facelift surgery is still the gold standard.

Dermal Fillers

The most important skin components that maintain a youthful appearance are collagen and elastin. Both components decrease with the passage of time and exposure to environmental stressors, such as sun and pollution. In addition to the loss of collagen and elastin, gravity further contributes to aging skin. Irregular folds, sagging skin, and contour irregularities emerge, resulting in an aged, undesirable appearance. The most common facial areas treated with dermal fillers include the nasolabial folds and marionette lines around the mouth, deflated lips, and the cheeks.

Most fillers in the Juvederm® and Restylane® collections work well for naturally decreasing the depth of deep nasolabial folds, softening marionette lines around the mouth, and re-inflating volume-depleted lips.

Facial features often associated with youth include elevated, rounded cheeks and a well-defined jawline. Older, aged faces typically have more hollow, sunken cheeks and droopy jowls along the jawline. Voluma®, a product from the Juvederm® collection, and Restylane® Lyft both work well to restore lost cheek volume, thereby revealing a more lifted, youthful appearance.   Restylane® Lyft also works well to soften jowls and add definition to the jawline.

BOTOX®

BOTOX® is traditionally used for reducing muscle-induced wrinkles, like the horizontal lines on your forehead, vertical lines between your eyebrows, and “crow’s feet” around your eyes. However, it also is used in many “off-label” (not approved by the FDA for that use) areas including the neck, jawline, and lips.

BOTOX® works by blocking nerve signals to relax muscles in key areas of the face. The eyebrows may begin to sag with age, creating hooded eyes that make people look tired. Gravity and overworked muscles both contribute to this look. BOTOX® injections are often used for a non-surgical brow lift, to reposition drooping eyebrows resulting in a more open-eyed, brighter appearance. BOTOX® can additionally be used to lift drooping corners of the mouth, thereby softening “sad” marionette lines.

Dermal fillers and neuromodulators like BOTOX® are often used in combination to produce more significant improvements than either treatment could accomplish alone. This combination therapy is referred to as the “liquid facelift.”

Facelifts

Dermal fillers work well for addressing volume restoration and quality of skin, but surgery is necessary to address the quantity of skin. A facelift is the gold standard for removing excess, sagging skin on the face and neck. Excess skin is surgically removed, and the deeper underlying tissues are tightened. Facelift surgery results in more dramatic and longer-lasting improvements. 

Many people choose to start with less invasive injectables before moving to longer-lasting, comprehensive plastic surgery procedures like facelifts. 

Ready for a change? The Cirillo Institute sees patients from Bryn Mawr, Newtown Square, and the entire Philadelphia area. If you’d like to find out more about injectables, plastic surgery, and other options for sagging, aged skin, send a message online to request further details.