The hands are arguably the most important parts of the body, in terms of going about everyday life. Because of this, the hands take a lot of abuse, and over the years, it can show. Wear and tear, aging, and stress, all change the appearance of the hands. But why should people be concerned?

The hands are also social tools. We use them to interact with other people in many different ways, and how people perceive the hands can be, in turn, how they perceive the person. This is why it is very important to also preserve the youthful look of the hands. And this can be done in a number of ways, one of which, is hand rejuvenation surgery.

What is Hand Rejuvenation Surgery?

Hand rejuvenation surgery is the method of revitalizing the appearance, feel, and texture of the hands. This is done by moisturizing and softening the skin, reducing excess flaps of skin, removing age spots, eliminating scars, reducing the visibility of veins, and more. There are specific methods that are available to deal with each specific problem, that all comprise the hand rejuvenation process.

Micro-dermabrasion, for instance, is a very non-invasive treatment of the hand’s skin that uses very tiny micro-crystals to scrub the skin, gently polishing it, and revealing the newer, younger skin beneath. This treatment reduces the visibility of age spots, and can lessen the visible damaged caused by sun damage.

Radiess or Hyaluronic Acid Injections: These are fillers that can be safely used to give volume back to the back of your hand. With age many people lose the fat under the skin and thus the increased wrinkles caused by the thinning of the hands which make you look a lot older than your real age.

Fat Grafting is yet another method, which deals with the loss of volume, or “thinning” of the hands. The procedure requires taking fat from a different part of the patient’s body, and then injecting it into the back of the hands, increasing its volume, and reducing the “boney feeling”. This procedure usually is done through multiple sessions of small increments using local anesthesia.

Visible Veins are also a problem for the hands, and sclerotherapy is the answer to this problem, which is a procedure that requires the injection of a concentrated solution into the vein. This causes the vein to slowly disappear, reducing, if not eliminating its appearance on the hands.

Other methods available are Chemical Peels, which reduce the brown spots and discolored parts and wrinkles of the hands caused by aging. We use a series of a fruit acid or a series of TCA peels. While it is a very effective method, it is advised that the procedure not done too deeply as the skin there is very thin and inexperienced or aggressive operators can  cause scarring of the hands.

Light energy can also be used through the procedure called intense pulsed light (IPL). This uses bursts of high energy pulsed light to reduce the discoloration in the hands, stimulate collagen production on the skin, smoothen the texture of the skin, and increase the thickness of the dermis.

Risks associated with each procedure and recovery time

Most of these procedures have the basic risks that include infection, swelling, redness of the skin, skin itching, irritation, or pain, and bruising. It is imperative that patients follow the surgeon’s instructions carefully, and take the necessary precautions and medication as directed.

Recovery time of each procedure can range between a few days to two weeks. It is best to use sunscreens or gloves while driving to protect your hands from photo-aging.