A study presented at the annual 2005 ASPS Plastic Surgery conference in Chicago says that looking older has as much to do with your bones as it does your skin.  Researchers have discovered that shrinking facial bones with age plays a significant role in overall appearance of the aging face.

Many people believe that only gravity creates wrinkles; however, we have discovered the loss of volume in the face and changes in bone structure also contribute to making us look older, say Dr. David Kahn, ASPS Member Surgeon and co-author of the study. In addition to losing the fat in our faces as we age, changes in bone contour significantly contribute to the appearance of facial aging.

In this facial aging study, researchers examined the CT scans of 30 female and 30 male patients in three different age groups.  Bone volume was found to significantly decline with aging.  Researchers discovered that the bones change their shape, dissolving, shrinking, and creating more space beneath the skin.  The skin’s elasticity decreases with age, making it difficult for the skin to compensate for loss of bone mass.  These factors result in the hallmarks of aging: wrinkles and drooping of the facial skin.

Women were found to lose bone volume at a younger age than men.  Dr. Kahn and his colleagues believe that this earlier loss may be why women seek facial plastic surgery earlier and more often than men.  In light of these findings, the plastic surgery team believes that tissue augmentation may come to play a more significant role in facial rejuvenation.  Dermal fillers, like collagen, Hylaform, Restylane, and Sculptra, can recreate lost volume of the face and lift the facial skin to produce a more youthful look.

According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), more than 114,000 surgical facelifts were preformed in 2004.  The popularity of hyaluronic acid-based filler procedures (i.e. Hylaform, Radiesse) grew by 927 percent between 2003 and 2004 alone.These non-invasive cosmetic surgery procedures are rapidly gaining popularity, as word spreads about the dramatic aesthetic results achieved without going under the knife.