FRESH FACE FORWARD

Take this quiet downtime to finally give your tired, ageing or uneven skin the necessary rejuvenation boost it needs.

LOOK YOUNGER IN WEEKS

What: Ultherapy (2-2.5 hours; $2,900 for 880 lines)

Where: Dr Kevin Chua Medical & Aesthetics, #03-05 International Building, 6694 6700, kevinchua.com.sg

Having read so much about Ultherapy over the years, finally the time came for me to seek it. After all, it is still considered the gold standard in non-surgical skin lifting and tightening some 12 years since its global launch. Using micro-focused ultrasound to lift, tone and tighten loose skin, Ultherapy is a quick, convenient and non-invasive one-session treatment with no downtime. It sends thermal energy into the deep structural layers of the skin without injuring the surface. This kick-starts the body’s own tissue repair process that aggressively stimulates the production of new collagen, which creates a natural rejuvenating effect.

Fda-cleared for skin on the brow, neck, chin and even décolletage, it is backed with a well-established safety profile and a huge body of clinical data on its efficacy. Unlike the gamut of generic HIFU (high-intensity focused ultrasound) treatments available in salons and clinics, the Ultherapy machine is only for use by doctors, and has an exclusive DEEPSEE visualisation feature that maps lines onto the skin using ultrasound imaging for precision targeting and patient customisation.

My maturing skin is starting to show early signs of ageing – there is some laxity, loss of volume and tightness. During my consultation, Dr Kevin Chua took me through a booklet on the procedure and explained the causes of ageing. He also told me that thanks to Ultherapy’s long history in the market, doctors over time were able to observe and agree on the optimal treatment depths across different parts of the face that would give the most effective results. Also, visualisation is key.

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I was prepped there would be tolerable pain, like a rubber band snapping on skin, and temporary side effects, such as redness, welts and numbness. But as it turned out, there was absolutely no pain. Perhaps it was the good numbing cream or maybe it was how Dr Chua was so involved and reassuring. I could barely feel anything on the upper face. On the lower face and jawline, there was a snapping sensation that didn't hurt. A nurse also held a vibrating massager against my face. I was flushed and slightly tender post-treatment, but there were no welts or numbness.

Within two days, my skin returned to normal. Ten days later, I woke up and saw that I looked really fresh and well-rested, and my cheekbones were more pronounced. The effects continued into the next two months, with my skin appearing more lifted and tighter, my jawline more defined, and the frown lines on my forehead smoothed out. Ultherapy certainly turned back the clock two to three years for me, and the results are expected to last at least a year. I’m sold. – Yanni Tan

NEW LEASE OF LIFE

What: Infini Plus Revival Program (90 minutes; $4,788 for eight sessions) Where: Radium Medical Aesthetics, #03-325/326 Suntec City Mall, 6837 0507, radium-aesthetics.com

Certainly the signs of ageing – fine lines, sagging, dullness – are problems on their own. Even if you were to take good care of your maturing skin now, old scarring and surface irregularities caused by teen and adult acne can really worsen your appearance. On a bad skin day, these vestiges of the past can come back to haunt you – your skin can look gnarly and uneven, with makeup not sitting properly. And I should know that, since I’ve been struggling with problem skin for decades.

Radium’s Infini Plus Revival Program seems to be a good all-in-one solution for someone like me. It combines four treatments into a targeted approach. The main therapy here is Infini, which is a minimally invasive treatment that uses microneedling and radiofrequency to release fibrous acne scar tissue deep in the dermis and encourage collagen reproduction to smooth out depressions. Next is PDRN Therapy, which involves injecting a drug comprising salmon DNA extracts to heal, repair and quell inflammation. Subcision treatment, for those who have deep pitted scars, may be administered with a special needle to break down stubborn scar tissue. The last step is LED Yellow Light, which speeds healing and improves circulation.

A truly successful treatment is only complete with good service. And I was grateful to be under the care of a good nurse and doctor at Radium for my four sessions there. Microneedling can be painful, and so the skin numbing and prep part needs to be well executed. My nurse really took her time to massage the numbing cream into my skin and gave me oral painkillers, which was one of the key reasons why the treatment was more tolerable than I thought.

Next comes the doctor. Although the clinic is helmed by the wellknown Dr Siew Tuck Wah, I was assigned Dr Gan Lee Ping who is a medical consultant there. I was very glad that she was extremely thorough in examining my skin. She listened to my concerns and saw what I saw – the complaints I had of my skin, even those that would seem nitpicky to others (this is so important to me, as some doctors I’d seen in the past had felt the issues I pointed out were really minor).

Although the treatment experience involved some pain, it was made much more comfortable by Dr Gan’s bedside manner. Nerve blocking injections were needed for the more sensitive parts of the face, but she made it reassuring for me by counting down each injection. She also talked me through each step during the Infini microneedling process, whether it was moving on to a different part of the face or adjusting the depth of the punctures.

For someone who has tried all kinds of medical aesthetics solutions for acne scarring, Infini gave me impressive, permanent results. I can barely see the rolling scars on my cheeks now, and with makeup, they are not easily discernible. The microneedles can reach depths of 0.5mm to 3.5mm, going far deeper than the 1.8mm depth of carbon dioxide skin resurfacing lasers, which I’d tried several times previously with middling results. I also had one session of subcision on the pitted scars on my temples, which became less noticeable.

What I really appreciate about this treatment is that it doesn’t just do one thing. Beyond scar removal, the nature of the wounding-and-healing process, along with the PDRN injections, also had great anti-ageing effects, such that my steadily maturing skin looked tighter, smoother and more lifted. Despite the treatment’s intensity, the downtime is minimal. Be prepared to go home red-faced and slightly puffy post-treatment, but for me, the side effects subsided within the next two days and were easily covered with foundation. Recovery also got quicker as I progressed through the sessions. – Jen Chia

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