Skin Treatments for Walnut Creek and San Francisco — Hyaluronic Acid, BOTOX® Cosmetic, and More

When your skin is radiant, smooth, and firm, it’s natural to feel confident and attractive. At our Walnut Creek practice, serving the San Francisco area, we offer facial rejuvenation treatments that include BOTOX® Cosmetic, fillers with hyaluronic acid, and much more. We can even plan a custom-designed skin care regimen that will repair aged, sun-damaged skin and maintain a youthful appearance for years to come.

• BOTOX® Cosmetic
• Injectable Skin Fillers
• RESTYLANE®
• Captique™
• Radiesse™
• Thermage®
• Laser Skin
• Obagi®
• You Look So Young®

BOTOX® Cosmetic

If your brow and forehead are permanently furrowed and you look like you are frowning even when you’re perfectly content, you may be giving the wrong impression to others around you. There are several options for correcting forehead wrinkles, including surgical brow lift. However, if you don’t think you need a brow lift, or are not quite ready to consider surgery, Dr. Ramin Behmand offers his Walnut Creek and San Francisco patients an alternative: BOTOX® Cosmetic.

A treatment with BOTOX® Cosmetic is a simple non-surgical procedure that smoothes the deep, persistent facial wrinkles caused by hyperactive muscles beneath the skin. BOTOX® Cosmetic has been widely tested and is approved by the FDA. BOTOX® Cosmetic has several advantages over traditional surgery; without scarring or downtime, patients are able to receive treatment and return immediately to their everyday lives.

BOTOX® is a natural, purified protein produced by the Clostridium botulinum bacterium. Once injected, BOTOX® works by blocking transmission of nerve impulses to the muscles in the area. BOTOX® effects are confined to the injection site and do not travel throughout the body.

Walnut Creek plastic surgeon Ramin Behmand finds that BOTOX® is popular among both men and women who have the following conditions:

• Frown lines between the eyebrows
• Forehead creases
• Crow's feet near the eyes
• Bands or cords in the neck, known as platysmal bands

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The BOTOX® Cosmetic Procedure

BOTOX® is administered directly to the target areas through a series of small injections. Discomfort is minimal and brief; however, if you are concerned or have had a previous uncomfortable experience, Dr. Behmand will apply a topical anesthetic or ice packs prior to the procedure to make the injection of BOTOX® a comfortable experience.

After consultation with you, Dr. Behmand will determine where to place the BOTOX® Cosmetic injections for the best results. The entire procedure takes about ten minutes. Significant side effects are rare; some people might bruise slightly at the injection site, but this effect is easily covered with makeup.

Dr. Behmand recommends that San Francisco and Walnut Creek BOTOX® Cosmetic recipients refrain from heavy physical exercise or facial massage for at least 24 hours after treatment.

Within a few days of your BOTOX® injections, you'll see a marked improvement in your frown lines which may continue to improve for as long as a week and can last up to four months. If you live in Walnut Creek or the surrounding San Francisco communities and would like to find out if BOTOX® can help you look and feel your very best, contact the Behmand Institute of Plastic Surgery today.

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Injectable Skin Fillers

The introduction of injectable skin fillers has dramatically increased the number of non-surgical facial rejuvenation treatments. While surgery remains the best way to achieve long-lasting results, soft tissue skin fillers can accomplish significant improvement in patients of any age. San Francisco area patients who come to our practice for hyaluronic acid and other skin fillers report improvement in the following areas:

• Wrinkle reduction
• Increase in tissue volume (as in lip augmentation)
• Skin contour improvement in areas of acne scarring

Each of the skin fillers offered at our practice has certain advantages over the others, and, often, a combination therapy may yield the best results. It is important to remember that no filler is permanent; to maintain your results, you will eventually need to repeat treatment.

The staff at our facility near San Francisco is often asked about the differences between BOTOX® Cosmetic and skin fillers such as hyaluronic acid. The main difference is the basic function of each treatment. Skin fillers are substances designed to add volume and remove wrinkles by plumping up the target area. BOTOX® Cosmetic, however, blocks nerve transmission to muscles, thus temporarily paralyzing the area treated. Continue reading to learn more about hyaluronic acid and other injectable skin fillers offered by Dr. Behmand.

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RESTYLANE®

RESTYLANE®, commonly used to fill such areas as the lips and nasolabial folds, is a natural dermal filler containing hyaluronic acid. This substance occurs naturally in the human body for the purpose of delivering nutrients and hydration to the skin. RESTYLANE® uses a biodegradable form of hyaluronic acid that is non-animal based, so no allergy tests are required before treatment.

As the most commonly used dermal filler in the San Francisco area, RESTYLANE® with hyaluronic acid is most often used to correct acne scars and wrinkles, and to augment thin lips. For most patients, RESTYLANE® remains effective for four to six months before repeat treatment is required.

Depending on the size of the area to be treated, RESTYLANE® can be applied in 30 to 60 minutes and can be combined with other cosmetic procedures. Side effects are usually minor and may include temporary swelling and redness at the injection site.

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Captique™

Captique™ skin filler is similar to RESTYLANE®; this clear gel’s active ingredient is biodegradable hyaluronic acid and can be expected to last from four to six months before the body reabsorbs the material. Periodic touch-up injections are easy to schedule; many men and women come in on their lunch breaks and can return to work immediately after treatment.

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Radiesse™

Radiesse™ differs from both Captique™ and RESTYLANE® in its basic composition. Rather than using hyaluronic acid, Radiesse™ behaves like a semi-solid soft tissue implant. The principle component of Radiesse™ is synthetic calcium hydroxylapatite, a biomaterial with more than twenty years of use in other surgical specialties. Once injected, the calcium hydroxylapatite remains stable long after its gel carrier is reabsorbed, resulting in long-term restoration and augmentation of the soft tissue.

Radiesse™ has considerably longer-lasting results than hyaluronic acid-based fillers, with results typically lasting over a year. Radiesse™ is most suitable for deeper soft tissue augmentation in the nasolabial folds, cheeks, and the frown lines of the forehead. It is often used in combination with a "softer" filler such as RESTYLANE® or Captique® to combine long-lasting deeper tissue augmentation with a smooth surface.

If you live in the greater San Francisco area and would like to learn more about hyaluronic acid and other skin fillers, contact the Behmand Institute of Plastic Surgery to schedule a consultation with Dr. Behmand.

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Thermage®

As your body ages, the collagen that supports the firmness of your skin gradually breaks down, causing sagging and wrinkles. Thermage®, also called ThermaCool™, is an advanced procedure that stimulates new collagen growth beneath the skin without any surgery or downtime.

During the Thermage® procedure, Dr. Behmand will use a handpiece to deliver radio frequency energy to the areas that need treatment. The collagen beneath the skin is heated and caused to contract and shrink. Although this shrinkage may have a slight firming effect on the skin, most patients notice a gradual change as the body’s healing process creates new collagen in the treated areas. Skin is tightened, producing a firm, youthful appearance.

Depending on the area of skin to be treated, Thermage® may take one to two hours. Dr. Behmand will likely ask you to arrive about an hour before your procedure so that he may apply topical anesthetic to the target area.

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Laser Skin Resurfacing

Skin that has become rough or blotchy can be easily refreshed through laser skin resurfacing, also called laser peel. This cosmetic procedure uses a laser to gently remove damaged layers of skin and to remove fine wrinkles. As new skin cells develop, they present a firmer, more youthful appearance. Age spots, sun spots, and other uneven areas of pigmentation can also be successfully treated with this method.

If you feel that the skin on your face or around your eyes is dull and dry-looking and you see fine wrinkles, contact the Behmand Institute of Plastic Surgery, located in the San Francisco area, to learn more about the possibilities of laser skin resurfacing.

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Obagi® Skin Care Products

Skin care is the first and most essential step in preventing premature aging of the skin. Maintaining your skin in good health slows aging and allows you to maximize the benefit received from other cosmetic treatments, such as a face lift, BOTOX® Cosmetic, or hyaluronic acid. Healthy, well-protected skin has better elasticity, stronger structure, and most importantly, greater resistance to further aging. It is never too late to start a good skin care regimen.

Skin care should address every aspect of skin health: cleansing, correction of previous damage, stimulating healthy skin cell regeneration, and protecting the healthy state of your skin.

We have had excellent success with the Obagi® Nu-Derm Skin Health Restoration system, which has shown excellent versatility in different skin types and stages of skin health.

During your consultation with Dr. Behmand, he will carefully evaluate your skin’s tone, dryness, thickness, and fragility. By identifying your natural skin type, the appropriate components of the Nu-Derm System which are most compatible with your skin type will be recommended. Some of the symptoms treatable with the Obagi® system include:

• Hyperpigmentation
• Photodamage
• Dryness
• Acne
• Eczema

The Obagi® Nu-Derm System can be specifically customized to repair, treat, and maintain your skin in an optimal state of health.

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You Look So Young® Facial Rejuvenation Therapy

You Look So Young® is a patent-pending rejuvenation therapy for the face that is based on the information gathered from more than 1,100 scientific and medical studies. This research was completed by experts at some of the most respected medical schools and hospitals in America, including the Johns Hopkins University, Harvard University, and the Mayo Clinic.

Composed of 28 distinctive nutrients, You Look So Young® serves to rejuvenate your skin to a younger-looking, healthier state. Not only can You Look So Young® decrease the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles on the face, it can also improve smoothness, tone, and softness of your skin by encouraging production of natural collagen and hyaluronic acid.

The facial cosmetic treatments available to our Walnut Creek and San Francisco area patients, such as BOTOX® Cosmetic and hyaluronic acid, including RESTYLANE®, are excellent ways to rejuvenate your facial features without the need for surgery. To schedule a consultation with Dr. Behmand, contact the Behmand Institute of Plastic Surgery in San Francisco area today.

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