The Liquid Facelift How to Beautify and Lift Your Face Without Surgery

The liquid facelift is one of the most popular non-invasive cosmetic treatments - and with good reason. A liquid facelift has the power to give your face the appearance of turning back the hands of time.

What Causes a Face to Need a Lift?

As we age, our skin begins to wrinkle and sag. The face loses its youthful form as the skin loses its elasticity. The environments, genetics, and the aging process itself each contribute to the loss of collagen and elastin, which can be seen as hollow areas and sagging. The loss of facial volume and elasticity contribute to the formation of folds, lines, and wrinkles.

How Does a Liquid Facelift Differ from a Traditional Lift?

A traditional facelift is a surgical procedure, which, by its very nature is invasive. The effects are permanent.

A liquid facelift is non-surgical. The two main treatments involved are dermal fillers and Botox, which are injected into the areas of the face requiring lifting.

A Liquid facelift temporarily restores a more youthful appearance by smoothing out wrinkles and lines and eliminating the appearance of sagging.

Why Do So Many People Choose a Liquid Facelift?

When a patient is looking for subtle, temporary changes to their facial appearance, a liquid facelift can be just the right combination of treatments.

Recovery time is quicker than it is from a traditional facelift and the cost is significantly less.

Some patients want to test the waters to see how they would like the results of having a facelift. A liquid facelift is the perfect way to do this.

For those people who wish to target only specific facial features, a liquid facelift may be the way to go. For example, unlike a surgical facelift, a liquid facelift will frequently be used just to reduce dark circles under the eyes, diminish the appearance of jowls, correct the appearance of sunken cheeks, lift the corners of the mouth, and many other smaller, individual problems. A surgical facelift is not designed to be used this way.

Effects can be seen almost immediately, making a liquid facelift the perfect choice to get a lift in appearance for an upcoming event such as a wedding, job interview, or reunion.

What are Some of the Benefits of a Liquid Facelift?

Eliminating or reducing lines, wrinkles, and folds

Improve facial contouring and volumizing.

Fill sunken areas like the hollows that can begin to appear in the cheeks.

Results are quick, becoming apparent within a few days.

A liquid facelift can give you a friendlier smile and a more rested and energetic appearance.

Offers a non-surgical address to the face and neck areas.

After a liquid facelift you’ll see a return of your natural facial contours.

The final results are a lighter, more youthful, and more attractive appearance.

What are the products and procedures used for a liquid facelift?

This term describes an overall term for a combination of procedures, usually involving at least two of the following:

Botox and Dysport

An underlying cause of facial lines and wrinkles, such as forehead lines, frown lines and crows feet is the repeated contraction of certain, specific, facial muscles.

When injected into those muscles, both Dysport and Botox will temporarily reduce the activity of these muscles, which then smooths the face and reduces wrinkles and lines.

Juvederm and Restylane

Restylane and Juvederm are dermal fillers. Both are made from a natural substance found in the body known as hyaluronic acid. When injected into the skin, this binds with water and expands, filling out the skin and reducing wrinkles from the inside out. These fillers add volume to the deep layer beneath the skin, smoothing out lines and wrinkles.

How Long Will a Liquid Facelift Normally Last?

A patient can go for a year or more between this type of cosmetic procedure, depending on the injectable fillers used. When Botox injections are combined with a dermal filler, each is made to last longer than when used alone.

Give us a call to schedule an appointment and one of our specialists will go over how a liquid facelift might work for you. We’d love to see you here.

Male Breast Reduction Surgery

Improve Your Appearance with Male Breast Reduction Surgery

Gynecomastia is the enlargement of breast tissue in boys or men, and while it’s not a serious problem, it can be really difficult to cope with this condition because it’s embarrassing and some men even avoid certain physical activities and intimacy to hide it. Hormonal changes are usually the trigger for gynecomastia and more than half of boys develop this condition during puberty and it goes away with age. However, if gynecomastia persists, medication or surgery may help.

The ideal candidate for Male breast reduction surgery is someone who:

• Is physically healthy, of normal weight and does not have a life-threatening illness or medical condition that can impair healing
• Has stabilized breast development
• Has a condition that cannot be corrected through non-surgical breast reduction medical treatments (e.g. medication)
• Is a non-smoker and non-drug user
• Has a positive outlook and realistic goals

Teens may benefit from the breast reduction surgery, but must be made aware that additional procedures may be needed if their breasts continue to develop. 

If you or someone you know is struggling with gynecomastia and are looking into surgical options please contact the gynecomastia doctor in San Francisco at (415) 392-3333.

Male Breast Reduction in San Francisco

Learn more about Male Breast Reduction

Before and After Male Breast Reduction Photos

7 Ways to Save Money on Cosmetic Procedures

Getting a needed cosmetic or laser surgery procedure can make you feel great! But, face it, getting that nip or tuck, injection or laser treatment does not always easily fit within the budget. We understand that.  That’s why we have come up with some ways for you to look and feel great, and save money at the same time.

Sign up to be on our hotlist

One way you can save money at the San Francisco Plastic Surgery and Laser Center is by signing up for our “hotlist”. We will sometimes have an appointment cancellation without much warning. When this happens, patients who have placed themselves on the “hotlist” specifying their availability for an appointment at that time will receive a text or email letting them know the slot is available.  If you want to come on over and fill that appointment time, let us know right away.  Usually we will offer a nice special or discount to the patient who helps us out by coming in at short notice.

Refer a friend to San Francisco Plastic Surgery & Laser Center

Another way you can save money at San Francisco Plastic Surgery and Laser Center is with our Referral Rewards Program. You are our greatest source of good will and new patients.  And we appreciate it every time you send someone our way.  To thank you for recommending someone to our practice, we’ll provide you with a special discount offers, like taking advantage of Allergan's Breast Augmentation and Botox program.

Wait to have your cosmetic procedure during a slow period

Plastic surgery practices tend to have slow times and busy times. You can save money on your next treatment or procedure by scheduling during one of our slower seasons.  After the holiday season is one good time to save money on your cosmetic surgery or other aesthetic procedure.  From January to March, as people are recovering from the expenses associated with the various winter holidays, we tend to have more openings available.  The other time of year when you can expect to save money are the months of September and October.  Give us a call for more information about these seasonal savings opportunities.

Sign up for our birthday specials

Happy Birthday! Sign up to receive a special gift on that great day when you were brought into this world.

Sign up for our mailing list

When you sign up for our mailing list we’ll keep you posted (but not too often) on anything new happening here at the SF Plastic Surgery and Laser Center. You’ll be updated on practice news, trends in cosmetic surgery and upcoming specials and discounts.

For instance, this month we had a Cool Sculpting special, Breast Augmentation discount, a great savings on Juvederm treaments, and 20% off Botox and Fillers for new patients and our Facebook fans.

Stay in touch and save money.

Become a fan on Facebook

 As a Facebook fan you’ll not only stay up to date with the happenings here at the Center, but will be among the first to find out about upcoming specials. For instance, just recently our Facebook fans were specially invited to “Say goodbye to lines and wrinkles” on “Transformation Tuesday” or "Filler Friday's" specials. This 20% saving on Botox and Facial Fillers is normally only offered to first time patients.

Specials such as this are among the many ways our patients can save money by becoming a Facebook fan of the San Francisco Plastic Surgery and Laser Center.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Take advantage of our Heroes special

 Men and women who have served in our armed forces deserve our gratitude and respect. If you are or have been a member of the military, please let us know.  You are entitled to a hero’s special discount.

Financing Options from San Francisco Plastic Surgery & Laser Center

In addition to the 7 ways you can save money with discounts and special offers, we offer financing to help you get that cosmetic procedure you’ve been dreaming of.

Care Credit, Prosper Health Care Lending, MedLoan Finance, and MedicalFinancing are all available at SF Plastic Surgery and Laser Center.

By offering a 6-month period with NO interest financing plan, Care Credit provides another way to help you save money. This plan can be used for surgery, laser procedures, skin care products, Injectables and Botox!

Social Media, Selfies, and the Rise in Facial Cosmetic Procedures

Kylie Jenner selfie

Social media and phones equipped with cameras have given rise to an avalanche of picture sharing. For example, in 2015, over 2 billion photos were shared on Facebook alone. That’s a lot of picture taking and a lot of people looking at faces - their own and others people’s. All this sharing is fun. Snapping close ups of yourself with friends and family, taking shots of yourself in different locations and against great backgrounds has been one of the real advantages of having a smartphone.

However, all these shared photographs of our special moments come with one singular downside; as we age, many dread the close-up as it can highlight the aspects of aging in our faces that we don't love.

How many times have you found yourself taking one look at a selfie and rushing to hit delete? How often have you seen a photo of yourself online, taken by someone else and cringed seeing a little double-chin or creases next to the eyes?

As you might expect, the digital age of selfies, and the increase in time people are spending on social networks like Instagram and Facebook has led to an increase in facelifts and non-invasive facial cosmetic procedures.

The good news is there are plenty of treatments available to correct sun damage, reverse the signs of aging, and help lift the face, chin, and neck, helping selfie takers and others who enjoy sharing pictures online look great in every photo.

Non-Invasive Facial Cosmetic Procedures

For those who aren't ready take the plunge into surgical options, there are less invasive facial cosmetic treatments that still offer incredible results.

Some of these cosmetic treatments are:

Botox

 Injections of Botox blocks certain specific muscular nerve signals, causing them to weaken and not contract. This action diminishes unwanted wrinkles and helps smooth the skin.

Botox (or similar formulations) can be used to help smooth:

Frown lines Forehead lines and furrows Crows feet Skin bands around the neck

Kybella

Kybella is a recently approved injectable treatment for reducing the fat under the chin.

Over 80% of people with double chins are worried about the situation and the effect it has on the overall looks.

Kybella injections are an alternative to liposuction or surgery for treating and eliminating the fat that creates this appearance of a double chin.

Kybella is identical to something called deoxycholic acid, which your body makes to help absorb fats. The facial cosmetic procedure works by destroying fat cells in the target area, reducing or eliminating a double chin and lifting the entire look of the face.

Cool Mini

The Cool Mini process sculpts away a double chin.. The treatments involve simply applying a specialized applicator to the fat beneath the chin. The Cool Mini system pulls the fat snugly into the applicator cup where cold plates reduce the temperature of the fat to its unique freezing point. Fat cell breakdown begins and over the next 12 weeks the fat is eliminated by the body’s natural sweep mechanism.

Once gone, the fat stays gone. The cells aren’t shrunken, they’re destroyed by the process and unlike liposuction, no incisions are made and no surgical risks are involved.

Chemical Peels

A chemical peel is one of the non-invasive treatments used to improve the appearance of the skin. Sun exposure, acne, or just getting older can leave the skin tone uneven, wrinkled, scarred, or spotted.

A chemical peel can help improve:

Age spots Acne and acne scars Fine lines and wrinkles Scars Sun-damage Rough skin Scaly patches on the skin Irregular pigmentation (coloring) Freckles

Dermal fillers Dermal fillers are used to diminish facial lines and bring back volume and fullness in the face.

As we age, our skin stretches and our faces naturally lose subcutaneous fat (the fat immediately beneath the skin). With the facial muscles now working closer to the skin surface, smile lines and crow's feet become more apparent.

Dermal fillers can be used to:

Plump thin lips Soften facial creases and wrinkles Improve the appearance of recessed scars Enhance shallow contours of the cheeks and other facial areas

Laser Skin Resurfacing

Laser skin resurfacing, also know as a laser peel, can reduce facial wrinkles, blemishes, and scars.

Laser skin resurfacing can improve minor facial flaws, such as:

Fine lines or wrinkles around or under your eyes, forehead or mouth Birthmarks Enlarged oil glands on the nose Aged or sun-damaged skin Liver spots Scars from acne or chickenpox Improve your complexion if you have yellowish or grayish skin tones Warts

Dermabrasion

Dermabrasion and Dermaplaning involve a method of controlled surgical scraping to “refinish” the top layers of the skin. These treatments can help soften surface irregularities and give the skin a smoother and more regular appearance.

These cosmetic techniques are most often used to improve the look of facial skin left scarred by accidents or previous surgery, or to smooth out fine facial wrinkles.

Dermaplaning is also commonly used to treat deep acne scars.

Both dermabrasion and dermaplaning can be used alone, or in conjunction with other procedures such as facelift, scar removal or revision, or chemical peel.

V-Line or K Surgery

Popular in the Asian community, the V-Line or K-Surgery makes changes to the jaw line, mandible and chin, narrowing and tapering the lower part of the face, creating the desired V shape.

This change in facial contours can be performed surgically, but can also be done with non-invasive techniques, such as Botox and fillers.

Frequently requested traditional cosmetic surgeries for the face are:

Facelift

The most complete alteration and rejuvenation of the face can be produced by a traditional facelift. During this facial cosmetic procedure the plastic surgeon will address and improve problems like:

• Deep creases below the lower eyelids
• Forehead wrinkles
• Sagging in the middle of the face
• Deep creases along the nose, extending down to the mouth
• Fat that has fallen or disappeared due to aging
• Loss of tone in the lower face area, creating jowls
• Loose skin and excess fat under the chin and jaw that create the appearance of a double chin

Necklift

A necklift may be just right for patients not ready for a full facelift but who have begun to see excess wrinkling on the neck skin causing a “turkey neck” or double chin, or jowl lines.

A necklift can address:

• Muscle banding in the neck, which created abnormal contours Excess fatty deposits under the chin
• Loose neck skin
• Excess fat and skin relaxation in the lower face that creates jowls

Chin Implants

The shape of the chin has a remarkable influence on the overall appearance of the face and neck. Improvements in the shape of the chin can have positive effects on other areas that you might not have realized.

A chin augmentation is a facial cosmetic procedure to reshape or enhance the size of the chin. It may be done either by inserting an implant or by moving or reshaping bones.

Rhinoplasty (nose job)

Rhinoplasty has always been one of the most sought after facial cosmetic procedures. For people who feel that their nose is too large for the face or in other ways misshapen or disproportionate a rhinoplasty can feel like a miracle.

Eyelid Surgery

With eyelid surgery you can improve the appearance of your eyelids (upper lids, lower lids, or both), giving you a brighter and more youthful look in photographs and in person-to-person contact.

Eyelid surgery is used to treat:

• Bags under the eyes
• Excess skin, and fine lines and wrinkles of the lower eyelid
• Sagging skin that creates folds or disturbs the natural contour of the upper eyelid
• Drooping lower eyelids that reveal white below the iris
• Excess fatty deposits that appear as puffiness in the eyelids

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If you are tired of looking tired in your selfies and are considering the prospect of rejuvenating your facial appearance and want to talk to an expert in facial cosmetic procedures, give us a call here at San Francisco Plastic Surgery and Laser Center, the offices of Dr Usha Rajagopal, Board Certified Plastic Surgeon with 20 years experience. We’ll be happy to schedule an appointment.

Brazilian Lift for Natural Butt Augmentation

Brazilian Lift for Natural Butt AugmentationFrom the San Francisco Plastic Surgery & Laser Center

If you’ve been thinking of getting a butt augmentation, you’ve probably heard of a Brazilian Butt Lift. Not only has this procedure been hugely popular with celebrities, such as Jennifer Lopez and Kim Kardashian, but with thousands of less famous individuals across America as well.  In fact, requests for this cosmetic surgery increased by close to 30% from 2014 to 2015.

Patients wanting to augment and lift their buttocks can do so in either of two ways; implants or fat transfer (also called a Brazilian Butt Lift). The major difference between the two is in the material used to enhance the buttocks.

In a butt augmentation with implants, the buttocks is enhanced, shaped, and lifted by use of specially formed solid silicone. During a Brazilian Butt Lift the patient’s own fat is used to build and shape the butt.

The Brazilian Butt Lift offers the most natural look and feel. Here’s why:

The term Brazilian Butt Lift describes a surgical procedure technically called an “autologous fat transfer”. During this cosmetic surgery, fat is removed from parts of the body such as the belly, “love handles”, and hips with liposuction.  The fat is then purified and specially prepared for re-injection into the gluteus (butt) area.  The plastic surgeon positions this fat in a way that lifts and enlarges the butt and enhances its overall contours.

Since it’s the patients own fat that’s used in the procedure, the buttocks with look and feel natural and normal after healing.

Brazilian Butt Lift Procedure

A Brazilian Butt Lift can be done under general anesthesia or with a local anesthetic. If a local anesthetic is used, the doctor may recommend intravenous sedation or “twilight sleep” to help the patient stay relaxed and calm for the length of the surgery. Our plastic surgeon will discuss these options with the patient during consultation.

Once the anesthesia has taken effect, the plastic surgeon gently liposuctions fat from the lower back, abdominal area, thighs, or “love handles” with a device designed to remove and protect the live cells. These cells are then purified in a special machine designed for this purpose.  After the fat is correctly purified and prepared, the plastic surgeon injects it back into the muscle layers through very small incisions in the buttocks.  The surgery takes about 2 to 3 hours.

Who is a Good Candidate for a Brazilian Butt Lift?

A good candidate for a Brazilian Butt Lift is a healthy individual who wants to enhance the contours of their posterior. He or she should have deposits of excess fat elsewhere on their body.

Patients who are quite thin may not have enough fat to transplant. If a patient is close to having enough excess fat, they may be able to gain enough weight to make a Brazilian lift possible.  Patients who don’t have enough excess fat can always get the new shapely and enhanced look for their buttocks by opting for a traditional butt lift using silicone implants.  This is a personal and technical decision that is best made in consultation with the plastic surgeon.

Results of a Brazilian Butt Lift

A Brazilian Butt Lift gives the patient a fuller, shapelier, lifted buttocks. Contours will be seen to be firmer and more rounded with an overall younger and sexier look.  Patients also love bonus factor of having less fat and a more slender look in the areas where the fat for the transfer was removed.  The overall change is both gorgeous and dramatic.

We frequently get asked if the results of a Brazilian Butt Lift are permanent. The short answer is, yes.

Some of the fat does get reabsorbed into the body. The amount that gets reabsorbed varies from person to person. Knowing that this phenomenon does occur, the plastic surgeon takes this into account. Any reabsorbing of fat cells the body is going to do will be over in three months.  After that, the new shape is permanent.

If you’re thinking about enhancing the contours of your butt, give a call and schedule your consultation. We can go over the possibilities and discover if a Brazilian Butt Lift is right for you.