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Neck
Neck
Treatments to Revitalise Skin
Hold Your Head High
Let’s face it – necks are a problem. The skin of the neck is thin, unsupported and prone to wrinkling, sagging, and puckering as we get older. Because it is thinner than the skin of the face, we can’t use powerful laser and IPL treatments like we can on the face. Because it is not supported by bone and fat pads, we can’t use dermal fillers in the same way that we can on the face. So often it’s the neck that gives us away!
Many treatments touted for the neck do not work well in my opinion. Fortunately, there are a number of treatments that we can implement that do make a difference. We’ve outlined them on this page. If you’d like to find out more about our clinic, or organise a free consultation, don’t hesitate to contact us today.
Treatment Options
Surgical Neck Lift
Probably the most effective way of truly lifting a neck, this service is almost always performed in conjunction with a lower face lift. Very effective but carries all the risks and downtime of a surgical procedure, will leave surgical scars, and costs $15,000-$30,000 plus. Envisage Clinic does not currently offer surgical lifts.
Fat Dissolving Injections
Injectable treatments that remove fat from the neck can be highly effective. They are relatively inexpensive and give permanent or very long-term results. Where the main issue is too much fat in the neck and under the chin and jawline, they are our preferred treatment. However, for patients who primarily have loose neck skin, they are not effective.
Fat dissolving injections use the body’s natural fat metabolising enzymes placed with small injections. Treatment is generally quite painless but there is some swelling afterwards, which can sometimes be quite significant for a few days. Results take around 2 months to materialise and sometimes more than one treatment is required. Reducing the fat under the jaw can make a massive difference to appearance, defining the jawline and improving the balance of the face in general.
Anti – Wrinkle Injections
Anti-wrinkle injections can be very effective for people who have prominent vertical muscle bands in the neck. They are very safe, and the results last for 3 to 6 months.
Thread Lifts
With thread lifts, special long sutures are placed under the skin. Sometimes these are anchored and are designed to actually lift the skin up. Other times, they are free floating sutures that essentially are acting as a filler and collagen stimulating material. Anchored threads are the most commonly used, but to be honest, I have never seen them achieve a good effect on the neck. This is hardly surprising, considering how fine the threads are and how mobile the neck needs to be. They are just not strong enough to maintain the lift effect. Thread lifts last 6 to 18 months and cost around $4,000.
Energy Devices – HIFU, Radiotherapy, Ulthera etc.
There are myriad energy devices on the market designed to use radiofrequency or ultrasound energy to tighten skin. I have trialled a large number of them. It’s a lovely idea – heat or ultrasound energy designed to stimulate and tighten up the collagen. Unfortunately, I am yet to see one of these treatments give consistently good results – even on the face, which is much easier to treat than the neck. Treatments like this have been around for many years, the most recent example being HIFU. I have seen dozens of patients who have had HIFU treatments and I have not had a single person tell me it worked for them.
Skin Needling & Dermapen®
The idea behind these treatments is that repeated minor trauma to the skin by way of needling will stimulate collagen production and improve the skin’s texture. These treatments can certainly work, especially when combined with platelet rich plasma (the “vampire facial”). I have seen some of our patients get great results as a result of this treatment on the texture of the skin on the face. Unfortunately, most people need more help on the neck, and improvement in texture and fine lines is not enough.
Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP)
PRP can be needled into the skin, as in the “vampire facial”, or injected directly under the skin’s surface. Like skin needling, it can greatly improve the texture and fine lines on the skin but does not give a great skin tightening effect.
IPL & Laser
Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) and lasers are very effective at treating sun-damage, pigment and redness. They can greatly improve the appearance of the neck’s skin. Both can improve texture and stimulate collagen, but they do not tighten the skin sufficiently to improve laxity in the neck.
Collagen Simulating Treatment
This is a very exciting new development. Some dermal fillers used at medical cosmetic clinics such as Envisage have their effect by stimulating collagen production. When used in a dilute form spread over an area, they don’t give extra volume, but do have a strong effect on the skin.
By increasing the collagen content of the skin, this treatment can have a very beneficial effect on the skin’s tone and texture. On the neck, this improves lines and wrinkles and can appear to have a tightening effect. Treatment is quite painless and results typically appear slowly over 3 to 6 months. Our recent results with this treatment have been so good that many patients that I have told need a surgical neck lift in the past I now would suggest they try this treatment first.
