Does a Thread Lift Work Like a Facelift?
At Eternal Dermatology and Aesthetics in Fulton, MD, we offer a natural alternative to a facelift called the PDO thread lift. This treatment uses PDO threads to naturally lift and tighten the skin and promote increased collagen and elastin production. The results are natural yet noticeable and can help patients with different aging-related needs reach their aesthetic goals.
Does a Thread Lift Deliver the Same Results as a Facelift?
Aging affects everyone’s face a little bit differently. Still, most people suffer from the most common signs of aging like lines, wrinkles, volume loss, hollow areas, drooping or sagging skin, and the appearance of facial folds and creases. In extreme cases, patients may feel compelled to schedule a facelift to address skin laxity and aging skin, but there is another solution.
A thread lift is a minimally invasive anti-aging treatment that uses simple techniques to lift and tighten the skin. The treatment process initiates a process that the body completes by increasing collagen and elastin production, which lifts, plumps, and tightens the skin. This treatment is essentially a minimally invasive facelift, but it doesn’t require surgical procedures or a lengthy recovery period with excessive downtime.
Natural-Looking Results
The results are natural yet dramatic and can resolve some of the most common signs of aging like hollow areas, drooping or sagging skin, and facial folds and wrinkles. While your results won’t completely replicate a facelift, since a facelift is a surgical procedure that repositions facial skin and requires manual surgical lifting and tightening, it is an effective alternative that delivers incredible, noticeable results.
What Is a Thread Lift?
A thread lift is an anti-aging treatment that uses polydioxanone threads, which are medical-grade threads that come in different shapes. PDO threads have been used in the medical world for decades, specifically during surgical procedures. They are safe, absorbable materials and provide those looking for an alternative to a facelift with the ability to lift and tighten the skin without surgery.
How Does It Work?
This treatment involves the use of PDO threads to accomplish different anti-aging goals. PDO threads come in different types, including barbed, smooth, and even those shaped like honeycomb.
Different shaped threads deliver different results and provide an alternative not just to a facelift but to cosmetic injectables like Botox and dermal fillers. The treatment stimulates collagen and elastin production while also delivering some immediate lifting and tightening effects that help combat some of the more common signs of aging.
What Happens During a Treatment?
During the treatment process, we use a specialized device to insert PDO threads just below the skin’s surface, where they lift and tighten the skin. At the same time, the body responds to the threads by increasing collagen and elastin production. The treatment process is quick and a simple and effective way to naturally address aging without having to schedule an invasive procedure like a facelift.
How Many Treatments Will I Need?
Most patients only need one treatment to achieve their desired results. You can schedule a follow-up treatment years after your initial treatment to maintain your results and promote anti-aging benefits.
Is There Downtime?
There isn’t any downtime after a thread lift. You will have to follow some post-treatment care instructions, but once your treatment is over, you can resume your normal daily activities. Typically, you’ll be asked to keep your head elevated, avoid using exfoliating products in the treatment area, and avoid certain sleeping positions to ensure optimal results.
You may also be asked to temporarily discontinue facials or facial massage treatments and avoid alcohol consumption and to stop using certain topical or cosmetic products until the area has healed.
When Will I See Results?
Most patients see some initial improvements immediately following a PDO thread lift due to the instant tightening effect after injecting the PDO threads. However, the most visible and noticeable results, including tighter skin, increased skin volume, and an overall improved appearance, come within three to four weeks of undergoing the treatment process.
Will I Look Natural?
One of the reasons that patients love this treatment so much is that it delivers natural results. Because it relies on your body to increase collagen and elastin production to lift and tighten the skin, the results look completely natural. You’ll have an improved appearance, but you won’t look as though you had some type of surgical procedure done to achieve younger-looking skin.
How Long Will My Results Last?
Once you undergo this minimally invasive treatment and experience results, you can expect those results to last anywhere from one to three years. While this treatment delivers results that last shorter than a surgical facelift, the good news is you can schedule maintenance appointments to maintain your results without having to worry about surgical procedures or significant downtime.
Maintaining Your Results Long-Term
Aside from maintenance appointments, there are other ways that you can maintain and even extend your treatment results. Using the right skin care products, avoiding excess sun exposure, and using sunscreen daily will all promote youthful skin and combat the signs of aging.
Eating a healthy diet, drinking plenty of water, avoiding stress, and scheduling in-office skin-perfecting treatments can help you achieve optimal skin health, which will help promote continued collagen production and enhance your thread lift results.
Am I a Candidate?
The best candidates for this treatment are those looking for a natural, minimally invasive alternative to a facelift that doesn’t require downtime and works. An initial consultation at our office is the first step in the treatment process, as it helps us learn more about your goals so we can design a treatment plan with PDO threads that will address your concerns.
Lift, Tighten, and Restore Youth to Your Skin
A PDO thread lift is a minimally invasive facelift alternative that will help improve your appearance in a quick and painless treatment process. If you are ready to schedule this treatment and eliminate fine lines and wrinkles, increase collagen and elastin production, and improve skin elasticity, we can help.