What can be done to rejuvenate the hand? As exposed skin, the skin on the back of the hand ages time similar to the face. Brown spots and thin, translucent skin are aggravated by the long-term sun exposure on the hands. The changes are similar to the very apparent changes of the lower eyelids with skin so thin that it reveals the underlying veins and muscle. Such problems are the source of many questions in the office. There are new treatment options for all those problems.

What about brown spots?  Brown spots still can be faded with Retin-A. Those spots that are persistent or still too dark can be faded with IPL (intense pulsed light). The light treatment has to be carefully applied to the offending spots. Maximum fade may take 3 treatments for any given spot but some improvement is usually reliably seen after one. Lastly a chemical peel still has usefulness in the hand but it has to be carefully applied as the hand skin is not as durable as the face. Sunscreen is a must as the brown spots will return quickly with sun exposure. In summary, a multi-pronged treatment usually works the best for brown spots.

What about very prominent veins and tendons showing through the skin? How can one make the skin thicker or appear thicker. Chemical peels, fat grafting or filler injection are the three most common options.

Fat grafting is a reasonable option but is surgery and requires a donor site on your body. Similar to the face, chemical peels can thicken the skin and make it look smoother but the result is not as dramatic as it can be on the face.

What works the best? What patients have told me is very satisfying is filler (Radiesse) injection at the skin of the hands. Other fillers do not help, only Radiesse (calcium hydroxyapatite) can address the hands. As in a wrinkle on the face, Radiesse stimulates the production of one’s own collagen at the level of the skin, truly rejuvenating the dermis in the skin--making it thicker and more importantly, more opaque.

http://www.radiesse.eu/photo-gallery/index.cfm#hand