Consumer Reports recently did a survey of 9 facial serums ranging in price from $20 to $65 per ounce. Their findings? None made any improvements to speak of after a use period of 6 weeks. According to the online article:

“Results were inconsistent

After six weeks of use, the effectiveness of even the best products was limited and varied from subject to subject. Every serum we tested produced a visual change in wrinkle length or depth for at least one person and did nothing for others.

Improvements were minor

When we did see wrinkle reductions, they were at best slight, and they fell short of the miracles that manufacturers seemed to imply on product labels. We don’t know whether using the serums for longer than six weeks would yield a greater improvement. But the dermatologists we consulted said our findings weren’t surprising, since the Food and Drug Administration, which oversees cosmetic safety and labeling, doesn’t require manufacturers to test the products for efficacy, let alone test for whether they meet their claims, though claims must be “truthful and not misleading.”

Natural didn’t cut it, either….Burt’s Bees Naturally Ageless Intensive Repairing Serum contained a laundry list of essential oils and no parabens or phthalates. And with a tiny bottle (less than one-half ounce), it was among the priciest products tested in terms of cost per ounce.”

In case you weren’t aware, as a Medical Doctor, I can prescribe a number of different creams that have proven results for efficacy. Ask me about it at your next visit…..

Got last minute notice today that a segment that I taped for The Today Show was about to air. This is a piece that features a friend (and patient) named Leslie Adler.

Take a look at this interesting piece that explores honesty in relationships and how much information we exchange with our partners versus keeping some information personal. Here, Leslie takes a day to go shopping and get a little Botox. She takes the position (as many of us do) that there is nothing wrong with avoiding the days’ events when it comes to her spouse.

Here’s the clip. What do you think? In my line of work I see many couples who do not share their visits to my office with one another, and incidentally, those are “secrets” that stay in the confines of the Doctor/Patient relationship. As I state in the segment, there have been instances when I see one spouse in the morning and the other in the afternoon and both ask me to keep their visits in confidence….a favor I will of course honor without even being asked.

Certain subjects like cosmetic injections, plastic surgery and a day of shopping are ones that people view differently. Sneaking new clothing items into the house may be more difficult than smuggling in your newly injected  Juvederm.

As far as your visits to your favorite boutique, I will leave that to you, but you can rest assured….your visits to Schlessinger Eye & Face are a secret that is safe with me!

Oh, and for the record, I am an Ophthalmologist specializing in Oculoplastic & Aesthetic Eyelid Surgery, NOT a Dermatologist as stated in the segment.

Today there was a piece in the New York Post in the “Pulse” section all about Bunny Lines. I love when a new phrase is coined by the media in an effort to identify a supposed condition or malady.

What are Bunny Lines you ask? Great question. In lay terms, they are the fine lines that begin to form around the area between the top (bridge) of your nose and the inner corners of your eyes. They are, in truth - present in many women, regardless of their experience with cosmetic injectable use using products such as Botox or Restalyne.

The presence of Bunny Lines should not be alarming to you if you suspect you have them. They are common and so easy to treat, but as I always say - each patient is different so you should be seen by a qualified physician with experience in this particular area.

Here are a few examples of Bunny Lines as seen in some very familiar faces. They may or may not have been previously treated with fillers or Botox - of this we cannot be sure, and none of these women are my patients but I will make my educated guesses….in the cases of the two women below, I would think that they have had Botox in the past, the application of which can help to accentuate your Bunnies or to completely remove them (temporarily), depending upon the skill level of your Doctor.

Bunny lines - do you have them? Have you grown attached or would you like to see them as they hop off into the distance? Give my office a call and we can discuss options

Best,

Dr. Dave

When discussing your lashes, how to grow them and some possible reasons for loss in fullness and length, we cannot ignore the possibility (and hopefully eliminating) the fact that a patient may have a condition that could be a contributing factor.

Enter your Thyroid, a small, hormone-secreting gland located in the lower part of your neck. This gland delivers energy to all of the cells in your body, so if there exists any type of malfunction, many symptoms can manifest.

The association between Thyroid disease and eye disease is well known. We can all picture Don Knotts and his bulgy eyes as a condition associated with an overactive Thyroid. However, the Thyroid gland controls many functions of the body. When women have hair loss of their head or eyelashes, an underactive Thyroid may be to blame.

The following is a small excerpt from Ask.com

Signs and symptoms include:

Below is an excerpt taken from ask.com that gives a brief overall description of some common Thyroid-related Eye Disease symptoms:

* Pain in the eyes, pain when looking up, down or sideways
* Dryness, itching, dry eyes, difficulty wearing contact lenses
* Inflammation and swelling of the eye, and its surrounding tissues
* Swelling in the orbital tissues which causes the eye to be pushed forward — referred to as exophthalmos — which can make Thyroid Eye Disease sufferers appear to have a wide-eyed or bulging stare.
* Bloodshot appearance to eyes
* Double vision (doctors call it diplopia)
* Impaired vision

Thyroid Eye Disease is known to go through varying degrees of severity, and can go into periods of remission as well. When it has been inactive for a period of around a half a year, it’s less likely to recur. Treatments for Thyroid Eye Disease range from lubricating eyedrops and ointments to, in very rare cases, surgery”

What it doesn’t say here is that you could experience changes in your eyelashes and if indeed you are diagnosed, Latisse may not be the treatment for you.

I treat a myriad of thyroid-related eye disease in my practice in Woodbury, NY. If you think you may be experiencing any of these symptoms, make an appointment with your Endocrinologist or Internist to get a complete physical and thorough blood work up.

Treatment is available and your condition can be managed. And of course, any questions, just shoot me an email at info@schlessingereyeandface.com or give me a call in my office 516.496.2122.

Dr. Schlessinger