To meet this growing demand, we recently introduced a new technology for skin tightening that is rapidly achieving national buzz.  The SCITON SkinTyte laser uses safe infrared light to comfortably deliver heat energy beneath your skin’s surface to tighten skin and address skin laxity. 

This amazing new technology selectively heats collagen within your skin’s dermis while at the same time chilling and protecting the outer epidermal layer.  This combined effect allows for the laser to deliver energy to a target layer while protecting the remaining skin.  Following treatment, the collagen becomes contracted with the overall result leading to tightening of the overlying skin. 

SkinTyte technology can be used on virtually all areas of the body affected by sun damage or the aging process.  In addition to treating damaged skin, it has also shown benefit in addressing other conditions such as the following:

• Erythema (red) skin rejuvenation
• Flushed skin patches
• Acne scarring (mild)
• Rosacea
• Fine facial lines and wrinkling
• Telangiectasia
• Hyper-pigmentatio
• Tightening of facial skin before or after
• Face or neck lift surgery
• Laser resurfacing
• Chemical peeling
• Treatment of resistant wrinkles following use of BOTOX® Cosmetic or facial fillers
• In combination with microdermabrasion to achieve an even more dramatic result

So how does this treatment actually work?
SkinTyte technology uses infrared heat energy to partially denature and contract collagen deep with the skin.  With this, collagen is not only tightened but the surrounding environment is also stimulated to produce new, more robust collagen.
 

How should you prepare for you SkinTyte treatment?
Prior to your appointment, all facial make-up, ointments or creams must be removed. Men will be asked to shave on the day of treatment prior to arrival at the office.
Before starting your treatment, eye shields or goggles will be placed to protect your eyes.  And for those with very sensitive skin, a numbing gel may be placed for up to 45 minutes before treatment to keep you as comfortable as possible. 

For optimal results (and depending upon body areas treated), most patients require anywhere from 2-5 sessions with each session spaced 3-4 weeks apart with sessions generally lasting around 45 minutes depending upon the number of areas treated. 

What is involved with the treatments?
Because our goal is to keep you as comfortable as possible, we may suggest that a topical numbing cream is used prior to your procedure.  And for those more sensitive patients, we can prescribe a mild medication for pain and/or anxiety. 

Expect some degree of minimal facial swelling the day following your treatment. This will resolve pretty quickly and most patients are able to wear makeup soon after. Keep in mind that it takes time for changes to the collagen to occur and so maximal results are generally seen around 3-6 months after your initial visit. 

Post-treatment pigmentation has been noted on occasion, but is highly treatable and fortunately very rare. Even rarer is a decrease in pigmentation of the skin after treatments. This also clears in time as well. We have never seen a scar or infection of the skin after treatment but it can occur. Swelling of the face for 3-5 days occasionally occurs and is most common in severely sun damaged skin due to reduced quality of connective tissue around the blood vessels.

After an initial series of 3-5 treatments, most patients achieve maximal continued results through maintenance sessions. In addition, if you are not currently on a medical skin care regimen, our skilled aestheticians will personally design one for you that will help protect your skin for years to come. 

The field of Cosmetic Medicine is rapidly changing as new advancements in technology make it easier and more pain-free to look and feel your very best. We look forward to helping you achieve your goals for the New Year and are proud to introduce this revolutionary new advancement to our clients.

Spring SkinTyte Special

Purchase a package of 3 treatments for $1,200 (Regularly priced at $1,500)

SkinTyte Treatments are associated with little to no pain and  no down time.

Call today and schedule your first treatment!

Prices Valid through May 31, 2011

Coming Up: Dr. Buford is speaking at the 3rd American – Brazilian Aesthetic Meeting and will be commenting on any new findings that he discovers while there. Dr. Buford finds it extremely important to keep his patients up to date on the latest and greatest in the world of International Aesthetic Medicine.

See all of our current promotions here.

Please call Nancy at 303.747.6719 to schedule your complimentary consultation.

]]> http://www.beautybybuford.com/news/due-to-an-overwhelming-response-we-have-extended-our-promotion/feed/ 0 http://www.beautybybuford.com/news/the-low-down-on-lash-lengtheners/ http://www.beautybybuford.com/news/the-low-down-on-lash-lengtheners/#comments Thu, 03 Feb 2011 18:38:30 +0000 drbuford http://www.beautybybuford.com/?p=1065 Read more]]]> Interested in looking your very best but not sure where to start? You might want to check your lashes. In most cultures, long lashes are seen as a symbol of beauty and femininity and revered as a beauty statement for thousands of years.

As most beauty experts will support, the eyes are truly the windows to the soul and are the first things that anyone looks to when they see your face. And if your lashes don’t pop, neither will your eyes. So why are your lashes so important and how can you help them look their very best?

First, think of your lashes as the window dressing around your eyes. When they are long, thick, and curled, they beautifully frame your eyes and provide an elegant border which draws the viewer (or potential suitor) into your eye’s center. But they serve an even more important function which may help explain our unconscious attraction to them.

Physiologically, lashes protect our eyes from dust and other small particles and so long, healthy lashes may potentially suggest that the eyes they protect are then healthy, as well. And so it stands to reason that one explanation for why we are attracted to people with long lashes is that we see them as a potentially healthy mate who would ultimately be a good provider. Does that sound crazy? It might, until you consider the subtle everyday clues which attract us to one another. Many of these clues unconsciously draw us to specific people without us knowing exactly why. It makes sense to us that long, full lashes are a symbol of beauty but we really don’t understand the reason. Again, propagation of genes is known to be a strong driver of attraction and if some aspect of another person suggests that they will be a healthy and suitable mate then it makes sense that we would be attracted to that person.

So if you’re like most women (or men for that matter), you were probably born with lashes that could stand some improvement. But with all of the products on the market, which ones actually work and which ones don’t?  To answer that question, we need to look at two types of products—those that merely condition your lashes and those that actually grow them.

The first category of products (lash conditioners) constitutes a majority of products currently available over the counter. And while many of them claim to be able to grow lashes, they really don’t. What they are doing is merely conditioning your lashes and making them appear more healthy in much the same way that a good shampoo and conditioner can improve the overall appearance of your hair (without actually doing anything to encourage it’s growth). These products often contain various combinations of oils, vitamins, etc. and can potentially improve the overall appearance of your lashes. However, they do not contain active ingredients that will ultimately grow your lashes.

The next category is the one that every product claims to be…but most are not. And that is the category of products that actually are effective in growing lashes. And, of these, probably the best known product is Latisse®. So how does Latisse® actually help to improve your lashes and is there any fact behind the hype?

For many years, ophthalmologists began noticing that patients (both male and female) who were being treated with prostaglandin analogue (PA) products for Glaucoma were showing improvement not only in their glaucoma but they were also seeing dramatic positive changes in the appearance of their lashes. And so one thing led to another and Allegan eventually assembled a group of physicians to evaluate their PA medication (Lumigan) for growing lashes and to evaluate the safety profile. In much the same way that they accidentally stumbled upon the cosmetic application for Botox, they did the same with Lumigan. And what this team of investigators found was that Lumigan was not only highly effective in improving the length, thickness, and darkness of lashes but it also did so with a very high safety profile and very few adverse events. From this study, and others, Latisse® has been postulated to improve lash appearance by effectively increasing the time that your lashes spend in their growth phase. And for some women with thinning brow hair, the product has been anecdotally touted as being effective for enhancing this area, as well.

But even with a well constructed study documenting safety of Latisse®, there have still been concerns. And the biggest one is the potential for iris pigmentation. The number one question that my patients repeatedly ask me is, “Will this change the color of my eyes?” And the simple answer is, probably not. While there were a few scattered reports of iris color change in patients using Lumigan, keep in mind that the drop was being delivered directly into the eye and at 20 times the dose used for Latisse®. And, color change appeared to be limited to a few eye colors with the hazel speckled variety being the most common. That being said, as a national speaker for Latisse® and a recent member of the Allergan Latisse® Expert Panel, I have yet to hear of any reports of iris changes using this product.

If we consider the eyes to be the aesthetic landmark of the face, then the importance of long, thick, dark healthy lashes suddenly becomes obvious. And with that, we now have a way to substantially enhance the appearance of our eyes with absolutely no downtime, no pain, and minimal fuss.

For a limited time only, purchase one Latisse® kit from BEAUTY by BUFORD and receive a certificate for a second Latisse® kit FREE! (act soon, quantities are limited)

To learn more about this exciting product or to reserve a kit of Latisse®, please call our Denver Plastic Surgery office. 303.747.6719

For many men, simply taking off their shirt is an embarrassing event and so men with Gynecomastia often not only avoid other people when they are changing but they also may actually end up avoiding the activities they would love to participate in such as swimming or heading to the water, simply because they don’t want others to see their chest.

So what exactly is Gynecomastia? The term derives from the Greek stems “gyne” meaning woman and “mastos” meaning breast. And while it most commonly develops during puberty, there are cases that have been seen in the elderly, although this is less common. And although there are more worrisome reasons for its development (such as pituitary and testicular tumors), the most common reason is an imbalance in sex hormones or the tissue responsiveness to them.

To accurately assess the cause, a thorough medical history must be taken and a physical examination performed. For most patients seeking cosmetic surgery to address this, many of them have already undergone extensive testing by their primary physicians prior to seeking treatment. Once they reach a Plastic Surgeon, the question is then what can actually be done and what results can be expected.

To properly treat Gynecomastia, three main tissue types must be evaluated: skin, fat, and the glandular tissue itself. For the most subtle forms of Gynecomastia where “puffy nipples” are the main complaint, simple removal of breast tissue under the areola can often provide very dramatic improvement with scars that are almost completely imperceptible over time. From those patients with fatty tissue contributing to breast prominence, liposuction is often performed initially to contour the chest wall followed by direct excision of the remaining breast tissue. If excessive, loose skin is a problem then a skin removal procedure may need to be combined either at the time of the initial surgery or down the road once swelling has resolved. In most cases, unless there is a tremendous amount of loose skin, most Plastic Surgeons will wait until the swelling has improved to gauge the amount of skin shrinkage that occurs. In a majority of cases, patients will rather accept a little loose skin than the incisions and scarring associated with the actual skin removal.

For the typical patient in my practice, I favor a two step approach. First, I begin with a very small (1.5-2.0 mm) incision on the lateral chest wall in an extension of the breast fold through which I perform VASER ultrasonic liposuction. The goal here is to not only remove excess fat and contour the chest wall but also use the ultrasonic energy to encourage even greater skin tightening. From here, I then do something very unique. I use a curved arthroscopic shaver (the same device used to remove damaged cartilage from knees, etc.) to gently and smoothly remove breast tissue from beneath the breast mound. Since adding this approach, I have virtually eliminated an incision directly on the breast itself and am having significantly greater control over shaping in the operating room and am seeing even better results and happier patients.

Foam padding is applied to the chest wall immediately following surgery and the chest is snugly wrapped with an ACE wrap to provide even circumferential compression. Dressings are then removed 24 hours later and replaced with a compression vest which is then worn for about six weeks. Patients can shower the day after surgery and return to normal activities within 2-3 days following their procedure. Most gradually return to exercise within 3-4 weeks after surgery and describe the discomfort as very tolerable.

The biggest limitation in treating Gynecomastia is not the actual procedures currently available but, instead, a real lack of education as to what can actually be done. Many men simply do not realize that there are excellent options for addressing this condition and so they never seek treatment. Of those that do, they are truly some of my happiest clients!

If you have symptoms of Gynecomastia or know someone that does, we encourage you to call our Denver Cosmetic Surgery office for more information. We look forward to hearing from you!