Sep Feature: Anti-aging for every age

It’s never too early to start getting professional help to take care of your skin. In fact, it is recommended to start on gentle, non-invasive treatments that help boost the skin’s natural collagen production as a preventive measure from your 20s. Even if the signs of skin ageing have already set in, all’s not lost. Dr Soh breaks down the signs of ageing at the different stages and recommends the treatment combinations that work best.

Q: How would you know if you’re at the “preventive”, “intermediate” or “severe” stage of ageing? What signs should you look out for at each stage?

A: In the 20s (preventive stage), you may notice skin dullness, blotchiness, visible pores or rough texture. At this stage of your life, the body produces less ceramides, which are the molecules that surround and nourish the skin cells. The results in drier skin. Skin firmness also begins to decrease.

In the 30s (intermediate stage), fine line and wrinkles, smile lines, frown lines or lip lines become more and more apparent. You may also experience mild sagging as collagen and elastic fibers begin to break down in the face. The inevitable forces of gravity are subtly emerging.

From the 40s onwards (severe stage), patients may experience loss of volume, de-hydrated (dry) skin, loss of fat resulting in loosen skin and more sunken eyes and cheeks. Wrinkles and lines start to appear deeper and more permanent.

Q: How does pairing Privé Signature Anti-ageing Facetherapy and Exilis Elite help with preventive ageing?

A: Privé Signature Anti-Aging Firming Facetherapy is all about firming, lifting and restructuring the elasticity of the skin. Designed to protect, repair, hydrate and sculpt, this skin firming facetherapy uses Cliniccare products, made in Sweden, exclusive to Privé. It includes a peel to gently remove dead skin cells, low molecular hyaluronic acid essence to replenish moisture, anti-ageing lifting serums and mask to instantly awaken skin to accelerate cell renewal and help in brighter, more lifted skin. Using a FDA-approved Omega Light Therapy, to emit therapeutic wavelength of light energy to treat your skin. Depending on your skin concerns, our professionals will select a suitable light treatment. Privé Signature Anti-Aging Firming Facetherapy is suitable for all and highly recommended for those with signs of premature ageing.

When coupled with Exilis Elite, a non-invasive face contouring treatment designed to tighten skin while reducing fat and signs of fine lines and wrinkles. It is the only treatment in the market that uses a combination of monopolar RF energy and ultrasound to stimulate fat lipolysis (the breakdown of fat cells) and collagen remodelling (for skin tightening) to treat areas such as the eyes, double chin, neck, and other areas of the body.

Q: How does Thermage + Exilis Elite help with intermediate ageing?

A: Thermage being a more intensive treatment as compared to Exilis Elite, using the patented Mono-polar Capacitive Radiofrequency technology to create a uniform heating effect in the deeper, collagen-rich layers of the skin. This gentle heating tightens and remodels existing collagen matrix and concurrently stimulates the production of new collagen, resulting in an immediate lifting effect. A well-defined three-dimensional skin contour can be achieved – all with little-to-no downtime!

The latest generation Thermage FLX has improved performance featuring AccuREP technology that automatically tunes each pulse of energy for an even more precise and consistent treatment, suited to your skin. It also integrates the Comfort Pulse Technology™ (CPT) with multidirectional vibration and interspersed cooling to offer a more comfortable experience and has a larger tip which can reach a bigger surface area , thus speeding up the entire process time by 25%.

For someone with intermediate ageing, it is recommended to do Thermage as the main treatment which usually last from 1 to 2 years and Exilis Elite serves as a great complementary treatment to maintain longer lasting results.

Q: How does Exilis Elite help with both preventive and intermediate signs of ageing? How is the machine used to address the different signs of ageing?

A: Exilis Elite delivers controlled heat to the deep layers of the skin (up to a depth of 3mm under the skin), causing new collagen fibres to form and tighten sagging skin. The benefits of stimulating your own collagen is that collagen is deposited in an orderly, structured manner and that there is no risk of allergy, immune reaction or injection-induced infection.

Therefore, people with preventive and intermediate signs of ageing can be proactively rebuilding their collagen, fiber elastin & epidermis prior to lines settling in. Your natural collagen will repair and thicken over 10 – 12 weeks, resulting in tighter, firmer, and younger skin.

Q: How does Ultherapy and Thermage complement each other in this “dual lifting” process?

A: Although both Ultherapy and Thermage are well-established, non-invasive energy-based treatments for lifting and firming, they actually use different forms of energy and work to target different layers of the skin.

Ultherapy uses micro- focused ultrasound energy with the deepest penetration of energy up to 4.5mm underneath the skin to target the SMAS (targeting facial muscle), the same layer plastic surgeons tighten during an invasive face lift surgery. At this foundational layer, ultrasonic energy delivered will stimulate new collagen by triggering your body’s own natural healing process to lift, tone and tighten loose, sagging skin. The ultrasound technology provides an added value of precision and safety by allowing doctors to see precisely what layer of tissue they are treating with real-time imaging.

On the other hand, Thermage uses Radio Frequency (RF) energy to target to the deeper, collagen-rich layer to stimulate collagen production, thus effective at plumping up fine lines and wrinkles. This dual treatment is a 2-in-1 procedure that provides dual results and saves time.

Privé’s Dual Lift Program help patients achieve a slimming effect for a more V-shaped face by lifting and tightening loose, sagging skin around the eyelids, brow line and jawline. At the same time, treating fine line and wrinkles around the mouth, eyes, forehead. Improved definition on jawline and under the chin. An overall tightened, more contoured and youthful appearance achieved naturally without surgery.