Younger Hands
Reported February 13, 2006
BALTIMORE (Ivanhoe Broadcast News) — The first of the baby boomers turn 60 this year, and they’re not taking aging lying down. They want to keep their energy up, their bodies fit and their minds sharp. Now, they’re also searching for ways to keep their hands looking as young as they feel.
Working in a busy front office, Jody Seling feels the pressure to look good. “I am the first year of the baby boomers,” she says. “You know, we want to have that youthful appearance. We don’t think we’re going to get old.”
At age 60, Seling says there’s one area that really troubles her. “The rest of my appearance I try to keep up to snuff as much as possible, but I feel like I have my grandmother’s hands.”
Dermatologist Robert Weiss, M.D., from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, says many women feel the same. “They look in the mirror, and they see their face. And then they look at their hands and go, ‘Whoa, these are looking 10 to 20 years older than my face,'” he tells Ivanhoe.
To give hands a facelift, Dr. Weiss injects a solution called sodium tetradecyl sulfate (STS), or Sotradecol, into ropy veins. The cells on the vein walls dissolve and become sticky.
“One side sticks to the other, and it seals it shut. Then the body absorbs it,” Dr. Weiss says. The body doesn’t need all the veins in the hands, so they will usually stay closed. If the body does need one of the treated veins, it will re-open but will be much smaller than it was before.
Dr. Weiss says, “You can take these big, ropy veins on the back of the hand and with a simple series of one to three injections, get them to go away within two to three months.”
“Hopefully, now with having this procedure done, I will feel less … I will feel more confident about showing my hands,” Seling says. She’s even in the market for a ring to show off her new, much younger-looking hands.
The solution treatment costs between $250 and $450. It’s permanent and usually only needs to be done once. Dr. Weiss says there are no safety risks to having the procedure, and many dermatologists’ offices now offer it.
If you would like more information, please contact:
John Lazarou
Johns Hopkins University
(410) 955-2966
http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/wilmer/