7 Healthcast: Hands of time

Whether it's a loving hand to hold or a firm hand to shake. Our hands reveal a lot more about us than you might think...they can be a dead giveaway to our age.

Charlotte Hanna
"We always remember our face, but we forget our hands."

Susan Goldfarb
"My hands would always outdate my face."

Susan Goldfarb and charlotte hanna say their hands look older than they feel. So they're ready to try *their hand* on getting a new grip on looking younger.

Charlotte Hanna
"My boss told me that i have great looking hands but if i could get rid of the spots on them they would look even younger."

And fortunately, there are some new procedures that could have your hands looking fresh-- plump and young in a snap!

Dr. Loretta Ciraldo
"All that we're doing is giving her back substance that she used to have long ago."

One of the newest options for many women is injecting the face filler Restalyne into the hands to plump them up.

Dr. Loretta Ciraldo
"If your skin is almost drapey in texture, and veins that are looking pipe-like...then you're a candidate."

Just one treatment will last six to eight months and the only side effects are possible pain, redness, and swelling at the point of injection.

Susan Goldfarb
"I can't believe it's all that it is to it."

It's costly starting at about $600 for both hands.

Another up and coming option is called IPL- intense pulsed light and laser treatments where you ‘zap off’ brown spots while tightening up loose skin.

Susan Goldfarb
"No pain whatsoever and very quick."

Occasionally, patients will experience blistering and hyper-pigmentation. There's one procedure that freezes off age spots...in less than 5 minutes.

Dr. Manjula Jegasothy
"What i like to do is spray the backs of someone's hands with a cold spray called liquid nitrogen and in a weeks' times what will happen is it will form a scab, and then the spot falls off."

While it may sound like a chilling experience...it saved the day for charlotte.

Charlotte Hanna
"There’s a little sting and it feels very cold."

Best of all, it costs only $150 and the only side effect is hyper-pigmentation, which is rare.

Charlotte Hanna
"Now my age doesn't show, so everything that i try on looks great! Definitely my hands are my selling point."

But what about those unsightly veins? Some experts say get rid of them all together...

Jeffery Hsu, M.D.
"Fifteen minutes in the office, no anesthesia required."

It's called sclerotherapy, where a foam like substance is injected into veins causing them to collapse. Dr. Jeffery Hsu of skincare physicians of Chestnut Hill says while it sounds like a nail-biting experience--don't worry...

Jeffery Hsu, M.D.
"It's virtually painless, it's actually easier than getting your blood drawn."

You will see final results in about 3 weeks and it will cost you about $500 and some patients may need as many a 3 treatments. Susan says *hands down* she now looks as young as she feels.

Susan Goldfarb
"Very happy, it's brought back some sparkle to my life. My hands are plump they are smooth. You can hardly see the veins."

Another tip, try the new at-home microdermabrasion kits to keep hands looking fresh. They only cost about $20 and can be found at your local drugstore.

Skin Care Physicians of Chestnut Hill
1244 Bolyston Street, Suite 302
Chestnut Hill, MA 02467
617.731.1600
www.skincarephysicians.net

(Copyright (c) 2006 Sunbeam Television Corp. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)