Category: Blog

Face it. This long, hot summer and intense sun did a number on your skin. As Healthy Skin Awareness Month, November is the perfect time to take steps to refresh and renew your skin care regimen.

Observed in November, Healthy Skin Awareness Month is a public health and awareness campaign that aims to raise awareness about the importance of having healthy skin. Skin is our body’s largest organ, and this month is a good time to help learn how common skin problems can be prevented.

Embrace sunscreen. We often think to only use sunscreen during the summer, but we can actually use sunscreen every day to help maintain the skin’s youthful appearance. One way skin cancer can be prevented is also through the proper use of sunscreen. Apply SPF 30 or above in the morning before your make up.

Wash your face. Be sure to wash your face when waking, before bed and after sweating. Washing when you wake up removes the dirt and bacteria that settle on your face while sleeping. Before bed, you want to remove makeup and grime, such as smog, smoke or dirt, which may have landed on your skin.

Check for skin cancer. Take time regularly to check your skin for signs of cancer. Self-exams can help you find skin cancer early when it’s highly treatable. If you notice a spot that differs from the others, or one that changes, itches or bleeds, make an appointment to see a physician immediately.

Avoid smoking. Don’t take up smoking or make a plan now to quit smoking. Smoking is shown to speed up the aging of your skin and contributes to growing fine lines around your mouth.

Enjoy a MedSpa treatment. MedSpa is a unique name for a range of special procedures designed to rejuvenate your skin, as well as your body and mind. All MedSpa treatments have one goal in mind: the health and rejuvenation of your skin. Professional aestheticians and nurse injectors work with you to find the right age-appropriate treatment suitable for your needs so that you leave feeling happier, lighter and younger.

Dr. Mark Hamilton, M.D., F.A.C.S., and his team work with you to select exactly the right treatment that best suits your needs. Without the need for surgery, the team of aestheticians and nurse injectors applies a custom treatment to give your skin a complete makeover.

As a pampered customer, you’ll relax in a pleasant environment as our team of professionals work to remove your stress, using special therapies, non-surgical treatments, injectable solutions and FDA-approved fillers to revitalize your skin. Treatments include Limelight IPL (Intense Pulse Lighting), microneedling, PRP (platelet-rich plasma) fractional and strength lasers and chemical peels. The full range of treatments are excellent for treating common issues, such as sun damage, wrinkles and fine lines, acne, skin blemishes and scars, as well as red or brown spots.

MedSpa treatments are so advanced that even the people who know you best will never learn your secret, that you received one of our MedSpa rejuvenation services. Making you glow and look your very best, erasing the summer’s sun damage and allowing you to shine this upcoming holiday season.

Interested to learn more? Ask us about a treatment customized just for your skin and call us in Indianapolis/Carmel at 317-614-0639 or in Greenwood at 317-210-4339.

Have you started to notice looser skin around your neck and chin, maybe even your lower cheeks? Or possibly, your neck isn’t as defined as it once was. You would like options for toning and tightening, but plastic surgery – like a facelift – feels overwhelming.

A non-surgical option does exist and has been honed over the past decade to achieve many of the benefits of a facelift but without the recovery time and potential risk that can come with surgery. The procedure, known as FaceTite™, is a non-surgical facelift alternative that uses minimally invasive radio-frequency (RF) energy to tighten skin and improve the appearance of your face.

You’ll be pleasantly surprised that it’s so minimally invasive, you could have the out-patient procedure performed on a Friday and be back engaging with family, friends and co-workers by Monday. Significantly less downtime than a traditional facelift.

The way it works is the RF energy coagulates fat in your neck, chin and cheeks, while tightening the skin and stimulating collagen production. Collagen is the most abundant protein in your body, a major building block and often described as the glue holding you together. This all leads to a tighter neck and jaw line and a more refreshed appearance without invasive surgery.

During the procedure, a small tube, called a cannula, is inserted under the skin to effectively deliver the RF energy. This also allows the RF energy to be targeted to very specific areas on the face and neck, heating them without damaging the surrounding tissue. Thanks to the small size of the cannula, you will have no visible scarring. The procedure lasts approximately 45 minutes and can be done in only one session.

If that still makes you a little nervous, different sedatives are available to help prevent any pain and anxiety during your treatment. General anesthesia is an option if you’d like to be completely sedated. Or there’s PRO-NOX (nitrous oxide and oxygen) instead, which is like laughing gas and allows you to relax without going under full anesthesia.

After you’ve had the procedure, benefits can be seen immediately, and the results are long-lasting. And, you’ll continue to see improvement as you progress 6 and 12 months afterwards toward achieving optimal results.

As you consider FaceTite™, you’ll want to maintain your good general health, as well as stable diet and exercise plan. After the procedure, strenuous activities and exercise will be limited. You’ll want to be sure to work with your physician, Dr. Mark Hamilton, M.D., F.A.C.S., to create a treatment and recovery customized – and right – for you.

Interested to learn more? Ask us about FaceTite™ and call us in Indianapolis/Carmel at 317-614-0639 or in Greenwood at 317-210-4339.

The history of barbed sutures (threadlifts, PDO threads) has been disappointing. The newest generation has promised increased safety and longer duration. Unfortunately, a recent study in the Aesthetic Surgery Journal shows otherwise.

The study followed 160 patients who underwent facelifts with barbed PDO threads. The good news is all patients did see some improvement initially as well as at one month. Unfortunately, by 6 months the benefits had markedly declined. No patients had any improvement by one year.

In addition, the threads had a high rate of complications, with over 34 % experiencing at least one serious side effect. Superficial displacement of the threads occurred in 11.2% and infection in 6.2%. Other significant side effects included prolonged erythema (9%) and skin dimpling (6%).

Threads were not a marked savings compared to surgery. Most patients spent around 40% what a facelift would cost. This for a procedure with results that last less than a year compared to 10 plus years on average for a facelift.

We at Hamilton Facial Plastic Surgery have seen some serious side effects including prolonged infection from threads placed elsewhere. Dr. Hamilton recommends patients considering placement of threads understand all the risks and the limited benefits.

Jeuveau is the newest neuromodulator(neurotoxin) to go along with the other products that we have had for some time, Botox cosmetic, Dysport and Xeomin. While there are a few studies out there on Jeuveau and it is FDA approved, we are still just beginning to figure this product out and what it can do.

Jeuveau like the other neuromodulators works to relax muscles temporarily and results in softening of wrinkles and creases. We are using it for the many of the same areas we have been using Botox Cosmetic, such as frown lines, forehead lines and crow’s feet, although technically it’s only FDA indication at this point is the glabella (frown lines). It is injected in the same fashion as the other products in the office with little discomfort or downtime- patients can do this on their lunch break.

We have now been using this product for about 6 weeks and the results so far have been similar to what we have seen with other neuromodulators. There may be a quicker onset of action and a few of our patients have reported this as well. We have had, however a few nonresponders- patients who had done well with Botox Cosmetic in the past and did not see any improvement with Jeuveau.  Otherwise to date we find this product to be very similar to the others that we have been using.

The big question is how long does Jeuveau last?? There are a few studies that suggest this product may have a comparable duration to Botox Cosmetic, but they were limited and not of the same size or duration as previous studies for injectable neuromodulators. In addition, as with all new products, regardless of the studies, we really do not know until we try it ourselves. Lastly, all patients have different responses to medications, and we expect the same to hold true for Jeuveau; some may find this a better product, others may find better results with the product they are using.

The real advantage to date that Jeuveau may have is pricing. Based on what we are seeing so far, we do expect this to be a less expensive product than Dysport or Botox Cosmetic. At present, it appears this product will cost our practice 10-20% less than the others to purchase.

So is Jeuveau right for you? I think it is too early to tell. If you are having great results with Botox Cosmetic, Dysport or Xeomin, then I am not sure yet there is a great reason to switch. For those looking for a bargain and willing to try something new, however, Jeuveau might be a good option. 

Look for more updates as we get more experience with Jeuveau.