HOW DO THEY ACT?

There are two types of threads that have arrived on the beauty market in Europe, with very different indications. All are absorbable. Like certain suture threads, they are gradually “digested” by the body, causing an inflammatory reaction which would stimulate the production of new collagen. The result is a more or less significant redensification of the skin, depending on the type of thread, visible within six to twelve weeks after the intervention and lasting for one year. Another interest, “certain face ovals need to be enhanced rather than filled in,” says Dr. Charles Volpei, vice-president of Sofcep (French Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons). In some cases, a treatment that combines stitching and injections is more subtle than an excess of hyaluronic acid”.

HOW IS A SESSION GOING?

There are two techniques depending on whether one chooses the mesh threads or the tensor threads. The doctor applies an anesthetic cream one hour before for the laying of the mesh threads. He then places them one by one in the places provided, in 15 to 30 minutes. For the tensor threads, he first injects an anesthetic. nIes then inserts one by one, following a V marking; in U or Z, spring them, pull on them to create the desired tension and cut the end. The installation lasts 30 to 45 minutes. The feeling is uncomfortable. Right after the intervention, we are red and slightly swollen, we sometimes have bruises. With the tensor threads, we have dimples where the doctor brought them out and cut them, and sometimes mini-folds in front of the ear for several days. If the excess skin is significant, these waves may take time to disappear.

WHY SHOULDN’T YOU GET PACKED?

As there are no scientific studies and the marketing of these threads is recent, we only have the opinion of laboratories and a few practitioners. a protocol is needed to assess their effectiveness and specify the possible complications (infection, granuloma, asymmetry, etc.). After the placement of the tensor threads, “are the post-operative results as simple as that? What about the pain the following days? asks Dr. Patrick Trévidic, cosmetic surgeon and scientific director of FA.C.E.2f@ce. We feel the threads under the skin at first, especially when we make certain gestures. But for how many days? Is the placement of mesh threads that interesting, when it costs more than a filler with hyaluronic acid for a result that is barely more lasting? “When a treatment works perfectly, such as botulinum toxin injections, it is immediately necessary. This was not the case for the tensor threads, recalls Dr. Volpei. The technique must gain in reliability and regularity of results. Another question: are the threads so easy to install? “This requires a good knowledge of anatomy: you have to position them in the right place for a natural result and without asymmetry”, agrees Dr. Kron. On the other hand, it is not trivial to introduce a foreign body into the skin, even resorbable. “We talk about the harmlessness of suture threads, but we never place ten, twenty or thirty in the face! says Dr. Patrick Trévidic. The risk: an excessive inflammatory reaction, which will have to be treated. One certainty: the result is disappointing if we expect the effectiveness of surgery, and it is a shame that the name “medical facelift” is confusing.

TWO KINDS OF YARNS

mesh wires
They are considered when the skin becomes less dense and is marked a little. “We create a collagen framework which generates a small tension and allows to soften the furrows, to reinforce the commissures or to maintain the cheeks, specifies Dr. Hugues Cartier, dermatologist, secretary of the SFME (French Society of Aesthetic Medicine). This restructures the skin from the age of 35, but it does not lift it. Of Korean origin, Mesofils are smooth and thin, 3 to 9 centimeters long. Each is connected to a needle. The doctor places six to fifteen, more depending on the area being treated. The cost: from 500 to 800 € per session.

Tensor threads
These are aimed at women from 45 years old with the beginning of sagging of the cheekbones and cheeks, a less clear oval or furrows that are marked. The most recent, the Silhouette Soft bidirectional cones in polylactic acid, are made in the United States. The doctor places one to four on each side of the face. “We obtain a light traction of the skin which gives excellent results still visible one year later. It works in a global maintenance concept, but not in a 55-60 year old woman who has never had recourse to aesthetic medicine,” says Dr. Sebagh. The effect is optimal three to six weeks later and lasts up to two years. The condition: still elastic skin, neither too thin nor too heavy, but thick enough to hide the threads. The cost: from 1200 to 1500 €.