124 SAN JOSE MAGAZINE SEPTEMBER 2007

Recapture your youth by using the latest technology

The ScienceofBEAUTY

“Recent advances in skin care have enabled cosmetic

dermatologists to help their clients look younger without

invasive surgery and with minimal downtime. In the old

days, people had very few options when it came to

attaining the youthful appearance they longed for. But

scientific advances have changed all of that. Now the

most advanced noninvasive cosmetic procedures can

minimize the signs of aging and ensure our faces look as

young as we feel.”

—Dr. Iris Gin

M E D I C A L S P O T L I G H T

L E S L I E H O W A R D

SEPTEMBER 2007 SAN JOSE MAGAZINE 127

a moisturizing liquid to loosen the debris andclear clogged pores, so the dead skin cells canbe softly taken away with a gentler vacuum. Itis a great procedure for skin maintenance, andit has no downtime.

What about laser hair and veinremoval?

Laser hair removal has been around a longtime, but because of new advances in hair re-moval, laser and light treatments are now farsuperior to what they once were. It is nowpossible to remove hair with less painful, moreeffective treatments. We customize each pro-cedure to the patient’s skin type, hair color,and medical history. Another area that pa-tients are very excited about is laser vein re-moval. We have had excellent results with it,and our clients have been thrilled. The processis fast, virtually painless, and the results areimmediately apparent. Patients marvel whenthey see the ugly veins they’ve hated for yearsvanish before their eyes.

What about Botox and fillers?Botox and fillers are a wonderful way to re-

duce wrinkles, plump lips, and reduce darkcircles under the eyes. And they’re very safe.When [they are] administered by a physicianwho has studied the skin, has clinical experi-ence in using injectables, and is well-versedwith the newest application techniques, pa-tients can expect excellent results. We offer awide variety of injectables—from Botox tothe newest fillers, including Restylane,Juvéderm, Radiesse, and Perlane. These fillersare long-lasting and very natural-looking. Thetreatments are essentially pain-free and onlytake a few minutes. The results are immedi-ate, and patients can return to work the sameday. The most important thing for me is thatmy patients get a result that is so natural-look-ing that their friends and family can’t tell thatanything was done—only that they look rest-ed and refreshed.

What about facials?There are a variety of facials that answer

our clients’ varying needs without downtime,and all of them are relaxing and pampering.The most advanced ones maximize the bene-fits with novel anti-aging ingredients. We’revery excited about one of our newest treat-ments: the Oxygen Facial by Intraceuticals.This system uses highly concentrated oxygento enhance the penetration of customizedanti-wrinkle and rejuvenating molecules into

the skin. Its results are fabulous—even betterbecause there’s zero downtime afterward.You can have an Oxygen Facial and go outthat night. Your skin will be luminous! Thishas become one of our most popular treat-ments—for both men and women. It’s alsovery relaxing. I’ve read that Madonna ownsthree of these machines, and she keeps themin her various homes.

Do you offer skin-careproducts that will help maintain my skin’s youthfulappearance?

My highest priority is my patients’ ongo-ing success. The basic building block to greatskin is the daily at-home regimen. There is-n’t one single skin cream that is best foreveryone (despite what advertisers wantyou to believe). To help our clients maintaintheir newly rejuvenated skin, we carry morethan 200 different skin-care products; eachof them is designed to meet the individualneeds of each patient. I take the time to talkto each patient to find out what their cur-rent skin-care routine is, and what they arewilling to do as far as maintenance. Somepatients are willing to invest a lot of timeand effort into it; others want a quick, basicmaintenance program. We are always ableto come up with a routine that is effectiveand realistic for each patient.

What is your unique approachto cosmetic dermatology?

These days, there’s always a lot of mediahype about the newest cosmetic treatments.Unfortunately, the latest trend may not bethe best investment. At Kalia, we listen, andwe work with our patients to build a programthat will work. I have more than 10 years’ ex-perience in cosmetic dermatology, and it ismy highest priority to make my clients’ skinlook healthier and younger. We also have afull spectrum of treatments available to helppatients maintain their skin’s newfoundhealth on their own. I simply want my pa-tients to feel great about themselves. Wetake the time to explain all the options topeople and to build a package of services thatis customized to their goals and desires.

For more information:

408.356.1000

www.kaliaskincare.com

www.NBC11.com/skincare

126 SAN JOSE MAGAZINE SEPTEMBER 2007

r. Iris Gin is a petite woman with the face of a younggirl and the mind of an Ivy League graduate.She earned her undergraduate degree in biol-ogy with honors from the University ofPennsylvania. She then spent two years doingmedical research at the Rockefeller Institute in

New York City, and went on to earn her medicaldegree from the University of Southern California,

School of Medicine. She completed her dermatology residency atthe University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, where she also per-formed several clinical studies during the early developmentalstages of dermatological lasers.

Let’s start with the ba-sics. What are some ofthe most common cos-metic procedures thatpeople ask for?

Minimally invasive proce-dures have increased by rough-ly 50 percent over the past fiveyears. People are delaying sur-gical procedures because of thealternatives that are now avail-able. I’d say injectable proce-dures, such as Botox, dermalfillers, and laser services are themost popular. The beauty ofthese treatments is that they areso effective yet subtle, and thereis little to no recovery time. Sopeople look younger and morerefreshed without the risks andlengthy healing process of a sur-gical procedure. My clients of-ten tell me that they feel muchyounger than their chronologi-cal age and that they simplywant their appearance to re-flect that. But as they’ve grownolder, their skin has becomewrinkled, started to sag, and isshowing age spots. It happensto all of us. People just want toremove the most visible signs of aging and regain some of their lostyouth.

Does this mean people no longer need cosmeticsurgery?

No, there is definitely still a need for cosmetic surgery. But whatmany patients want is to regain the healthy, firm, unwrinkled skinthat they had when they were younger. At Kalia, my staff and I pro-vide noninvasive cosmetic procedures—such as laser and light treat-ments—that reduce skin wrinkling and sagging, age spots, and pig-mentation. We complement this with an artistic blend of Botox andinjectable fillers to soften wrinkles and rejuvenate the face. I care-fully evaluate every patient and ask them how they want to look. It

is important to give a very realistic expectation for a cosmetic pro-cedure. If a patient wants a result that is only attainable throughsurgery, I refer them to the appropriate doctor. By the same token,I receive many physician referrals as well. Good doctors are only in-terested in achieving their patients’ goals.

What types of noninvasive procedures areavailable to battle these signs of aging?

I’m very excited about the advances in laser therapy. Fractional laserresurfacing is a breakthrough advancement that dramatically improvesskin tone and texture while it reduces wrinkles and age spots. In the past,laser resurfacing treatments were painful and had significant downtime.The newer fractional-laser technology can give great results, and the

treatments are virtually pain-freewith minimal downtime after-ward. Best of all, my patients arethrilled with the results.Another procedure my patientsare very excited about is the “liq-uid facelift.” Rather than pullingloose and sagging skin tightly,the liquid lift uses injectables torestore the plumpness and full-ness of younger skin.

I’ve heard a lotabout “skin tighten-ing” procedures—will they improve mysagging skin?

Skin-tightening proceduresare one of our specialties, andthey are very popular. Thesetypes of treatments are gain-ing quite a bit of media buzz,for good reason. They are en-ergy technologies that useinfrared or radiofrequencyenergy to stimulate collagenproduction within the skin.These energy technologiescreate tighter, firmer skin, andare especially effective in theareas around the neck and

jawline. The final results depend on one’s own body’s ability to pro-duce collagen, and therefore can vary from person to person. I thinkthe future of this technology is that it will start being used morecommonly in body contouring and cellulite reduction.

What are some of the advances you’ve seen in microdermabrasion?

The older microdermabrasion procedures tended to be more painfuland less effective than they are today. Traditional microdermabrasion typ-ically used aluminum crystals to remove the superficial layers of the skin,and a vacuum removed the dead skin cells and crystals from the face. Thenewer machines, such as the SilkPeel Dermalinfusion, use a diamond tipto polish off dead skin cells without loose crystals. The SilkPeel also infuses

SJM

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Dr. Iris Gin is a board-certified dermatologist and the head of Kalia Dermatology &Laser Center in Los Gatos.