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Neck and Chest

Skin rejuvenation is commonly thought of as a facial issue, but it’s certainly not the only area that needs protection.  The skin on the neck and chest gets almost as much sun and weather as the face, and yet it is thinner.  While patients are active in applying SPF to their face, they leave out the neck and chest, even though it receives almost as much as at the face.  This can lead to a mismatch between the two areas, showing up as skin that is brown, red, or blotchy.  While creams are a good protectant, they are inadequate as a treatment.  The most common forms of damage and treatments:

Brown sports from age and sun damage

Brown skin spots are essentially sun damage. You may have had them as freckles when you were younger, but they get larger and often darker as you get older. Be sure to have a dermatologist examine your skin before any cosmetic treatments are performed to make sure you don’t have a skin cancer. The first thing to do about brown spots and sun spots on skin is to prevent more of them by sunscreening. Make sure you use a sunscreen that protects you from UVA radiation by having at least 5-10% zinc or titanium or 3% mexoryl. You can also try over-the-counter “bleaching” creams if your age spots are localized or not too bad. “Bleaching” creams don’t really bleach, rather they temporarily decrease the production of brown pigment in your skin. Drugstore skin bleaching lotion contains 2% hydroquinone and are not very effective. Bear in mind that continued sun exposure will stimulate the growth of brown spots, so that the bleaching creams will not protect you against the regrowth of brown spots or the development of new ones. Only sunscreen can do that.

Prescription bleaching creams containing 4% hydroquinone plus or minus other ingredients like hydroxy acids, sunscreens, or tretinoin, can provide some releif. These are more effective but still temporary. For some patients who are allergic or don’t want to use a hydroquinone cream, there are plant-based bleaching creams. These ingredients are ones like arbutin, thymol, and kojic acid. They seem to be less effective than the prescription creams.

Microdermabrasion and light peels are also options for mild to moderate brown spots. An aesthetician can perform microdermabrasion or a low-strength peel, and these can often give good results but need to be done in a series, usually to 3-6 treatments, to be effective.

A medium peel, like a TCA peel, can also give good to excellent results but should be done by an experienced aesthetician.

The most effective treatment option for brown spots is a series of laser treatment. Lasers for brown spots are also, unfortunately, the most expensive. An IPL laser (also called photorejuvenation) usually gives excellent results. IPL reduce redness, stimulate mild collagen growth, and add to your skin’s glow. You will need maintenance treatments when brown spots reappear, usually once or twice a year.

Fractional lasers are newer and may be the best option if you also have wrinkles or acne scarring. Some patients see results quickly with the Fraxel; but results will improve over 2-6 months.  The ablative fractional lasers, like the Active FX, have a 4-8 day downtime.

Neck and chest are red and blotchy

Having redness or broken blood vessels on your neck or even your nose does not mean that you are an alcoholic, contrary to popular myth. Often people with Celtic genes develop redness or even broken blood vessels on the nose, face and sometimes the neck and chest.  Redness and dilated blood vessels can also be caused by rosacea, sun damage, or certain diseases.

If the redness is due to a sun damaged neck, or you have rosacea that is under control, you may want to consider IPL/photorejuvenation laser treatments to reduce redness. The results are often excellent and take effect in about 6 months, as you complete your series of 5 treatments. You’ll need maintenance treatments once or twice a year. If redness is due to rosacea, the first step to finding rosacea treatments is to look at lifestyle changes, like diet and exercise.

Necklace lines

Some people get little lines or bands running horizontally across their necks. Because they can look almost like necklaces, they are called necklace lines. Some people get them relatively young, even in their 20s or 30s, even on children. The best treatment option is a small amount of Botox. Fractional lasers can also help soften necklace lines, but not as well. You will need to retreat this area every 3 to 6 months. Also, be sure to use skin care products to protect your neck and chest.

Wrinkles and crinkly skin on the neck

As we age, some of us notice that the skin on our neck acquires the texture of crepe paper. Others notice the skin can get a little loose. Until recently, there was no really good non-surgical option for loose or crepey skin on the neck. But, fractional lasers have shown some promising results for this problem. A fractional laser treatment requires two to four treatments over a 4-6 month period. The ablative fractional lasers, like the Active FX, have a downtime of 4-8 days.

The cords on the neck stand out

Some of us notice that we seem to be getting prominent vertical bands that stick out near the upper part of our necks (the platysmal bands). The two options to treat this are Botox, if these bands are minimal, or surgery. Botox may work to relax the muscles that make these bands stick out, but it will only work if the banding is early. If the bands have been there for some time or are very prominent, Botox will not work and surgery is your best option.

Wrinkles and lines on the chest

Wrinkles on our chest can occur from our sleeping positions. The best way to treat chest wrinkles is with fractional lasers.  At this point, there is a range of results from good to excellent depending on the laser and the provider. Sculptra or Botox on the chest is also a viable treatment. The skin is thin on the chest, so please only see expert injectors for this to avoid lumpiness.

 

For your treatment options for the neck and chest, call Radiant Medspa at 206-402-3063 in Seattle or 425-640-5900 in Lynnwood for a complimentary consultation.