If you are trying to work out whether you will benefit from dermal fillers or from a thread lift, these considerations could help to decide whether you would need volumising or thread treatment or both:
1 – After the age of 30, there is a tendency for the “cheek fat pad” to slide downwards – put simply, this is what eventually creates a “jowl” appearance.
2 – Thinning of the bone of the jaw, and a receding chin may provide less support to the cheek, thus causing loss of definition.
3 – Most importantly, loss of volume in the mid-face region – the “shadow” or “hollow” under the eyes and on either side of the nose – is the main cause of the early ageing appearance. Most people see this but cannot identify it as such, instead they end up sticking fillers under the lower eyelid, upper lip – all of which distorts the shape of the face.
4 – when any suspension or “thread” treatment is used to reposition the tissues in the face, one has to remember that this is simply a way of moving skin around and anchoring it to other structures, in this case, another part of the facial skin. So, it follows that the area it is is being anchored to must be strong, good volume, and not in itself likely to start sagging.
As a specialist in non-surgical cosmetic treatments, I usually start with assessing a patients face volume, and the “trend” or “pattern” of ageing – by comparing a current photo (front, both sides) – to a photo taken 5-10 years earlier, preferably see the parents ageing pattern as well.
If required, volume should be replaced first, because skin should never be tightened or stretched over hollow areas. Filling the midface will naturally define the profile, and tauten the jawline.
Next, any lack of support in the facial skeleton should be corrected with augmentation (Radiesse, preferably, as it is Calcium Hydroxylapatite, a biostimulant which I use to correct bumps in nose bridge, receding chin, sagging cheeks). Then if there is still any slack in the lower face, thread lift using Silhouette Soft or PDO threads (lifting threads, not just stimulating threads) can help with that.