In a new study, researchers found how fat loss make the face look older.
The research was conducted by a team at the Medical College of Wisconsin.
For many of us, as we get older the skin on our face begins to sag and we seem to lose volume around our eyes, cheeks and chin.
Is gravity taking its toll in our later years or do we lose fat over the course of several years that many of us associate with youth, vibrancy and energy?
Understanding the cause is paramount to how plastic surgeons treat the signs of facial aging.
The traditional theory is sagging: the facial soft tissues simply yield to the effects of gravity over time.
And while the idea that weakening ligaments in the midface could result in soft tissue descent still has merit, more recent studies point in another direction.
Perhaps the real culprit behind facial aging is the loss of fat – both near the surface of the skin and in deeper areas.
In the study, the team examined 19 patients who underwent computed tomography (CT) scans of the head on two occasions at least a decade apart.
Although the patients weren’t undergoing facelift surgery or any other cosmetic procedure, scans proved useful for measuring changes in fat deposits in the midface – the area between the eyes and mouth – over time.
The patients averaged about 46 years at the time of their initial scan and 57 years at follow-up.
While the findings varied among patients, the results showed a big loss of midface fat volume: a reduction of about 12.2%.
The findings provide direct evidence to support the “volume loss” theory of facial aging – and may help in understanding some of the specific issues that lead patients to seek facial rejuvenation.
One author of the study is Aaron Morgan, M.D.
The study is published in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.
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