Question: My 40th high school reunion is in 6 months. I don’t want aggressive surgery with downtime, but have deep smile grooves, puppet lines at my mouth corners and hollow cheeks. I also have wrinkles in my forehead and around the eyes with some sagging in the upper neck and jowls. What procedures can rejuvenate my face in time for my class reunion?

Answer: Six months is typically more than enough time to undergo some minimal invasive procedures that adequately rejuvenate the face.

For deep smile lines, or nasolabial folds, and puppet lines also known as marionette lines, injectable fillers are a common treatment of choice. Cheek hollows are also treatable with fillers. Popular options include 1-year temporary fillers like Restylane Refyne or Juvederm as well as Bellafill, the 5-year filler. While Bellafill costs more upfront, most of my patients prefer Bellafill due to it’s long duration combined with a high safety profile.

For the upper face wrinkles, neuromodulators can be very effective. FDA-approved neuromodulators include Dysport, botox cosmetic, Xeomin and Jeuveau. If your lines are deep, they likely took years to develop and one treatment alone won’t necessarily get rid of all the lines. Neuromodulators typically last 3-4 months. You may want to consider having a 2nd treatment 3 months after the 1st one and just before your class reunion, to help further soften the lines.

Six months is typically enough time to heal from a facelift or the Incision-Less Whisper LiftTM. If you want to avoid surgery, the Infini RF can be an effective minimal invasive option for lifting and tightening the neck and jowls. Infini RF works best for mild to moderate sagging. There is neither downtime nor post-treatment dressings. Infini works by stimulating collagen so there are no immediate results. Since your reunion is in 6 months, you should be able to see your final Infini result just in time for your reunion.

While Botox and fillers, including Bellafill, the 5-year filler, can typically be done in an hour or less, it is important that Infini be performed on a separate day.

Consultation with a Board Certified Facial Plastic Surgeon experienced in the full range of surgical as well as minimal invasive procedures is the first step. It is a faulty perception that one should use a non-surgeon for minimal invasive treatments and a surgeon only for surgery.  A comprehensive treatment approach from a specialist who is properly credentialed can optimize your facial rejuvenation results and significantly reduce your risks of complications and unnatural results. It is foolish to make cost a priority over credentials. 

Dr. Anita Mandal is a double Board Certified Facial Plastic Surgeon practicing since 1998. She exclusively specializes in facial rejuvenation and non-invasive body contouring. In addition to being on the medical staff at Jupiter Medical Center, her offices house both surgical and laser suites. Dr. Mandal is committed to giving her patients the most natural looking results.