Miss Balaratnam was recently featured in the Aesthetics Journal, the UK’s leading monthly journal for medical aesthetic professionals. Discussing skin damage, hyperpigmentation and associated advances in technology:
Click here to view the Aesthetics Journal
Sherina Balaratnam, medical director of S-thetics clinic and a former NHS trainee plastic surgeon, comments: “Younger patients – even in their 20s – have less advanced skin damage, but they’re more conscious of it from an appearance point of view.” That, she says, is owing to greater appreciation among younger patients of the dangers of UV damage, which in turn leads them to associate hyperpigmentation with the health of their skin. “Patients come to see me because they’ve reached a point in their lives when they’re bothered by hyperpigmentation,” Miss Balaratnam adds. For example, someone with many freckles on their face (caused by increased melanin) may perceive them to be attractive in youth, but less appealing with age. Similarly, dark liver spots on the face may be no cause for concern for one person, and be very distressing for someone else. Many practitioners, therefore, assess hyperpigmentation not in terms of how severe it is, but the degree to which it affects the patient.
Miss Balaratnam also opts for hydroquinone to inhibit tyrosinase (which causes melanin cells to become more active), along with tretinoin “to help drive the product deeper into the cellular layers in order to target deeper discoloration.” This follows a Visia Skin Consultation imaging session to analyse a number of contributors to complexion health and appearance, including UV spots that indicate sun damage, skin tone variation, pore size and wrinkles. The results may also indicate exfoliation with a cosmeceutical such as alpha hydroxyl acid (AHA), forms of which are beneficial in treating PIH and melasma.
In Caucasians, an almost-ghostly white complexion with very clear demarcation lines was once a tell-tale sign of hyperpigmentation treatment. “The only solutions years ago were harsh chemicals that bleached the skin, and fully ablative laser treatment,” explains Miss Balaratnam. “Now, we have skin-lightening agents that are so much kinder to the skin, and they’re becoming increasingly sophisticated. From fully ablative to fractionally ablative, it’s interesting to see how this will develop in the coming years.”
To book your complimentary consultation with our surgeon and medical director Miss Sherina Balaratnam please contact our team on 01494 670990 or info@sthetics.co.uk