Hand rejuvenation an important part of cosmetic consultation

MIAMI — Hand rejuvenation is an important part of cosmetic treatment that is often overlooked by patients and should be implemented into consultations with the appropriate patients, according to a speaker here.

“I still have a lot of trouble convincing my patients to consider their hands,” Bruce Katz, MD, said at South Beach Symposium 2017. “And with the exception of the face, hands are the most expressive and visible part of the body. We use them to greet people, to enhance verbal communication with gestures ... and to offer comfort.”

Bruce Katz

Interest in hand rejuvenation has grown, though, according to Katz. He explains to his patients that the same volume that is being lost in their face and other parts of the body is occurring in their hands as well. “You want there to be harmony with the hands and face, because we often have our hands by our face,” he said.

Katz has found, during his consultations, that while many patients use a high SPF on their face, such as 60, they use a much lower SPF, such as 8, on the rest of their body. It is important, he says, to educate patients about skin care not only for aesthetic purposes but for therapeutic purposes as well.

The morphological changes that occur in the hands from aging alone include thinning of the epidermis, diminution in number and diameter of elastic fibers and a decrease in the amount of subcutaneous fat. Solar damage can affect the hands even more, causing lentigines, rhytids, textural changes and dermal atrophy.

There are a multitude of different treatments for hand rejuvenation, depending on the morphological changes present or results of solar damage. Lasers can be used for lentigines, lasers and chemical peels can be used for textural changes and resurfacing and fractional CO₂ can be used for rhytids. For volume loss, there are temporary options like hyaluronic acid; longer-lasting options like calcium hydroxyapatite, poly-L-lactic acid or autologous fat transfer; and for a permanent option, physicians can use polymethylmethacrylate.

“I think it’s important to educate our patients about the importance of hand rejuvenation, as well as the overall aesthetic program; consider the morphologic changes that we see in order to guide therapy, as everyone is a little bit different; and then initiate a multi-modality approach for optimal cosmetic and therapeutic benefits.” – by Talitha Bennett

References: Katz B. Hand Rejuvenation. Presented at: South Beach Symposium 2017; Feb. 9-12; Miami Beach, Florida.

Disclosure: Healio.com was unable to determine whether Dr. Katz has a direct financial interest in the products discussed in this article or if he is a paid consultant for any companies mentioned.