As you grow older, your body produces less collagen and hyaluronic acid. Collagen plays a role in cellular turnover, keeping your face looking fresh and preventing fine lines and wrinkles. Hyaluronic acid is known for keeping the face plump and hydrated.
The loss of collagen and hyaluronic acid with age reduces elasticity in your skin and results in more visible fine lines. Lax skin and wrinkles can make you appear older than you are.
Many treatments are available that aim to restore laxity and lift the skin, resulting in a more youthful appearance. One effective and innovative option is NovaThreads, also known as a thread lift. This non-surgical treatment provides lasting results with no downtime.
What Is a Thread Lift?
A thread lift is a non-surgical procedure that rejuvenates facial skin. Threads are inserted below the skin’s surface to provide immediate lifting action that stimulates new growth of collagen and firmer skin tissue. Results are natural-looking and increase over time as the new collagen has time to form and create changes to the facial structure.
The threads used for thread lifts are polydioxanone (PDO) threads. Polydioxanone is fully dissolvable, and PDO threads are commonly used in surgical sutures. NovaThreads are patented PDO threads that the FDA has cleared for use in thread lifts. Like all PDO threads, they dissolve in the body over time.
Thread lifts can address aesthetic concerns in many areas, including the following:
- Jowls
- Crepey neck skin (“turkey neck”)
- Cheeks
- Jawline
- Crow’s feet
- Marionette lines
- Nasolabial folds
- Upper arms
- Lowered eyebrows
- Stomach
- Thighs
Most people find thread lifts most effective on the lower third of the face. The jaw area doesn’t respond well to dermal fillers or neuromodulators like Botox, which are best for treating the forehead and cheeks.
Patients see excellent results when treating the lower jaw area with PDO threads, especially for concerns like drooping neck skin and jowls.
What Are the Different Types of Threads?
A combination of two threads is usually used in a thread lift to maximize results. Each type is best for achieving specific goals.
Barbed PDO Threads
Barbed PDO threads have tiny barbs placed throughout. When inserted underneath the top layer of the skin, barbed threads will grab onto nearby fat and skin cells. The result is a lifting effect that stimulates the production of collagen.
Smooth PDO Threads
Smooth PDO threads don’t have barbs. When placed in the skin, smooth PDO threads help to provide support and structure to the top layers of the skin. Their insertion helps soften fine and deep lines and stimulates collagen.
What Are the Benefits of a NovaThreads Lift?
A few advantages to undergoing a NovaThreads lift include:
Natural-Looking Results
Undergoing a thread lift produces natural-looking results. You won’t experience an immediate, dramatic difference in your appearance like you would with a facelift. Instead, the results from the procedure grow over time as your natural collagen production is stimulated.
Long-Lasting
The results from a PDO thread lift last up to a year, peaking around three to four months following the procedure. Immediately following the procedure, you will notice a lifted and contoured effect. As collagen is stimulated, your results will gradually continue to improve.
May Be Combined with Other Treatments
When a thread lift is combined with other treatments, patients can see a significant difference in their appearance. For example, someone experiencing lines on their forehead and loss of volume in their cheeks may benefit from Botox and dermal fillers while using a thread lift to reduce skin laxity in the jawline.
Additional procedures to improve skin texture and pigmentation can also be added to your NovaThreads treatment plan.
What Happens During a NovaThreads Procedure?
Before scheduling a thread lift, you’ll undergo a thorough consultation at our practice. We will ask you for your treatment goals and seek to understand what you are looking to achieve through the use of a thread lift. Sometimes, a combination of procedures may allow you to maximize your results.
Be prepared to provide us with your medical history and a list of any medications you take. Understanding any health issues that you have will help us determine whether you are a good candidate for the thread lift procedure.
On the day of your thread lift, we’ll begin by numbing the areas to be treated with local anesthesia. We’ll mark the sites of the injections. During a thread lift, no cuts are made to the skin — only injections are used. The injections contain tiny threads that will be used to lift the skin.
There are two main approaches used during the NovaThreads procedure.
A NuMesh approach involves creating a mesh-like structure of PDO threads underneath the skin. The mesh uses only smooth PDO threads, resulting in enhanced collagen production and greater firmness of the skin in the area.
NuLift uses barbed PDO threads that are injected underneath the skin. This approach is best for the neck and jawline and helps to address skin laxity. The barbs encourage the production of collagen, which will result in a skin-tightening effect in the area.
Depending on the number of areas you are treating, the procedure should last less than an hour.
Are You Ready to Try NovaThreads?
If you’d like to experience the benefits of a thread lift, reach out to Exclusively Radiant MedSpa in Pearland, TX. We offer NovaThreads thread lifts to individuals seeking to improve skin laxity and stimulate collagen growth.
Our skilled medical team is passionate about helping you achieve the results that you are seeking. To get started, contact our office today!