Botox injections were up 8.1%, as were Restylane filler injections. Laser treatments were up 1.6% in Q4 2009.

Is this a sign the economy is turned around? Or is it a signal that some people won’t forego ongoing cosmetic care that keeps them looking younger and consequently makes them feel younger?

“We see this as a positive,” says Jeffrey Raval, MD, FACS, facial plastic surgeon practicing in Cherry Creek North, the upscale boutique and restaurant epicenter of Denver, CO. “It underscores the value in less invasive procedures like injections done more frequently so as to forestall major cosmetic surgery.”

Dr. Raval operates his practice Raval Facial Aesthetics together with Rocky Mountain Laser Aesthetics, a laser hair and tattoo removal clinic, in the same location. He has gained the reputation of being The Nose Doc in the Rocky Mountain West by his peer surgeons who have recognized his capabilities especially in revision rhinoplasty, made more complex because of the scar tissue that results from an original nose job. Dr. Raval also has been referred to as The Face Doc for his achievements in treating head and neck needs of patients, particularly in the cosmetic market sector.

“BOTOX is the most commonly used injectable in the cosmetic field,” says Dr. Raval (www.ravalmd.com). “The filler injectables are increasingly preferred because they don’t require the downtime that a traditional face lift or forehead lift or neck lift can require. Patients are short on time, working longer hours, putting in more exhausting weeks. While they’re showing evidence of being more tired, they don’t want to appear tired because it takes away their competitive edge. Filler injectables are the ideal solution to treat this very active and busy patient.”

On Jan. 20, 1010, the International Association for Physicians in Aesthetic Medicine (IAPAM) released a report that Botox and filler injections will lead the cosmetic treatments performed in 2010 as the country works its way out of the most severe recession in decades.

The editors of Consumer Guide to Plastic Surgery concur, releasing a forecast for this year showing Botox at the top of services that patients will find the money to pay for.

A Denver favorite plastic surgeon Board Certified Plastic Surgeon Dr. Jeffrey Raval can make you look and feel younger instantly with Botox® injections that take years off your face and erase wrinkles from your forehead and eyes. This non-surgical procedure, also called non-invasive, relieves facial wrinkles, particularly the wrinkles on the forehead, between the eyes and the crow’s feet area around the eyes. Botox is used on the upper one-third of the face.

Botox is strictly for wrinkles caused by the use of underlying facial muscles. Over time, creases in the brow area develop between the eyes caused by muscles for squinting, glaring or frowning. Also crow’s feet creases develop around the eyes caused by squinting, laughing, and crying. On the forehead lines of wrinkles develop, caused by a number of animated facial expressions of surprise, incredulousness, and worry.

If you have wrinkles on your forehead, between your eyes, or crow’s feet around your eyes, you are a candidate for Botox injections. You are a candidate if you have wrinkles in any area where there is muscle because Botox numbs the ability of the underlying muscle to tense up causing wrinkles. BOTOX is not recommended for use on the lower two thirds of the face or where there are no underlying muscles under the skin or epidermis.

BOTOX was approved by the FDA for use in cosmetic procedures in 2002. Within 5 short years, Botox became the most common cosmetic procedure, with 4.6 million patient treatments performed in the United States, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. Qualifications for Botox injectors vary by county, state and country. Jeffrey Raval, MD, FACS is a National Educator Physician and Trainer for the use of Botox Cosmetic.

Board certified by the American Board, Dr. Raval’s offices are located in Denver, Colorado in Cherry Creek North where he has Raval Facial Aesthetics and Rocky Mountain Laser Aesthetics at 250 Steele St., Denver, CO 80206.

Then turn back the clock

Exactly 40 years ago in 1969, a couple of out of work kids from New York collaborated to put together a music festival. Promoted as “An Aquarian Exposition,” the weekend-long music confab (August 15 to 18) was skedded to take place on a 600-acre dairy farm owned by a man named Max Yasgur. Max never imagined that the event would attract a half million concert goers or 32 of the best-known musicians of the day.

They arrived at Max’s farm without supplies of food, water and sunscreen. Sun tanning back then wasn’t frowned upon like it is today. Sunscreens weren’t as evolved either.

Today, the “kids” who ventured to Woodstock for that historic concert are in their mid-50s or older. Most of these Baby Boomers feel younger than their age and wouldn’t mind turning back the clock to look somewhat younger too.

Whether you’re celebrating the 40th anniversary of Woodstock, or if you just plan to head to a few concerts at Red Rocks this summer, Rocky Mountain Laser Aesthetics in Cherry Creek North can help turn back time.

The great outdoors can take a toll on your skin, especially in Colorado where we’re at altitude, cautions Jeffrey R. Raval, MD, FACS, owner and director of Rocky Mountain Laser Aesthetics. Besides the fact that Coloradans have the highest rate of skin cancer in the entire United States, protecting your skin from the sun’s damaging rays can go a long way toward keeping it unwrinkled and absent of age spots.

If your past as a sun worshipper is beginning to show, try the Diolite Laser at Rocky Mountain Laser Aesthetics. Say goodbye to any dark or brown spots caused by sun exposure. Have those cherry angiomas removed at the same time. It is a quick procedure with no down time required.

In summertime, skirts are shorter, tops are lower, and even makeup is sheerer and more revealing. If you’ve been working up to swim suit season since New Year’s or if you’re just now realizing summer is the season for looking fabulous, Rocky Mountain Laser Aesthetics can help.

With a few quick and easy injections, Dr. Raval who is known as The Filler Doc can turn back time, leaving your skin smooth and crease free. Dr. Raval chooses the best filler for your skin and your desired results from Botox, Juvederm, Perlane, Restylane, Sculptra, Radiesse, VolumaLift, Dysport or PureTox, depending upon where the treatment area is and what the individual’s needs are.

With age comes volume loss and to restore your skin to it’s young and healthy look, adding filler could be all you need.

Injections take but minutes and deliver immediate results. The improvements last an average of six months to a year depending on the type of filler used. Fillers are ideal for a lunch hour treatment. By the time you leave Rocky Mountain Laser Aesthetics, you’ll say, “What wrinkles?”

The Filler Guy, AKA Dr. Raval, will consult with you regarding the fillers he recommends and the results you can expect to enjoy. Most commonly, injectables treat the wrinkles surrounding or under the eyes, especially “crow’s feet,” and around the mouth, namely the nasolabial folds or “marionette lines.” Fillers are also used to smooth out the indentations in the glabellar region between the eyebrows.

Dr. Raval uses fillers to contour the shape of the face, smoothing the jaw line that becomes saggy and uneven with age. Fillers are also used to plump up the lips that narrow with age. Filler around the lip area is ideal to eliminate the fine lines that develop around the lips from smoking too.

Restore your skin, volume, shape and confidence with a visit to Rocky Mountain Laser Aesthetics. Visit www.rockymountainlaser.com or call 303.985.8520 for a consultation.

Once again, news headlines claim that Botox® injections can be lethal. The news reports are not only exaggerated, but inaccurate in that the news stories logged don’t differentiate between injections of BOTOX for medicinal purposes and the injections for cosmetic purposes-a big difference.

“Bottom line, all the reported cases of adverse events using Botox come from injections of BOTOX for medical purposes, not cosmetic,” says Jeff Raval, MD, FACS, American Board certified facial plastic surgeon who is ear/nose/throat board certified too. “The high level of doses of Botox used for medicinal purposes can be too much. For example, there have been cases that doctors injecting Botox in the neck muscle to treat torticollis, abnormal spasms of the neck muscle, have injected too much of the toxin. The patient’s throat can close up and he/she can have trouble breathing.”

But there are no reported incidences of lethal or near-lethal use of Botox for cosmetic treatments, Dr. Raval confirms.

The dangers in Botox use surface in the press every year or so. “There is no truth to the rumor that Botox Cosmetic is dangerous,” adds Dr. Raval.

It was 1988 when Bobby McFerrin’s a cappella croon “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” became the first in that genre to reach Number One on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The same year, the drug maker Allergan bought the rights to ophthalmologist Dr. Alan Scott’s innovative use of an injectable toxin to control uncontrollable blinking and crossed eyes, a partnership that helped to push the toxin through the regulatory approval process. One year later, in 1989, the FDA approved the drug and Allergan renamed it BOTOX.

It would be another 10 years before BOTOX would be used cosmetically, injected under the skin’s surface into the muscle tissue below effectively relaxing the muscle and eliminating the contractions that caused wrinkles-on the forehead, between the brows and around the eyes.

In the 30 years since its introduction, sales of Botox have soared with Botox injections being the most popular treatment over all other cosmetic options. Even in a recessionary economy, American’s spent $329 million on Botox in 2008, a 3% drop from 2007, but according to the New York Times, still not as great a drop as breast implants that dropped 12% in the same time period.

But just like McFerrin’s lyrics, Botox is proving to make people happy. The Canadian Globe and Mail reported in early April that studies conducted by Michael Lewis, an experimental psychologist from Wales, showed that the women in the test group who received Botox injections were significantly less anxious and depressed than did their peers who were not injected with BOTOX.

“The point is that by looking less anxious and depressed, patients are less anxious and depressed,” says Dr. Raval.

Tralee Pearce filed the story entitled “Botox: A shot at happiness,” citing scientific research dating back as far as Charles Darwin who theorized that the act of frowning can make an individual unhappier and conversely the act of smiling can make a person happier. Darwin called his postulation “facial feedback.”

“Public speaking guru Dale Carnegie promoted a similar theory,” Jeffrey R. Raval, MD, FACS, says. “Extend a smile; get one in return…the entire world is a lot more likeable. We see it all the time.”

Psychologists have an analogy they use to explain the phenomenon. “You are a mirror” describes in layman’s terms what actually takes place in scientific testing of facial images. “You attract what you radiate,” is the way advice columnists on dating websites like eHarmony and Match sum it up. The nuances in facial expression and body language communicate a person’s state of mind and serve to either make them more attractive or, in the case of a scowling countenance, repel others-consistent with Darwin and Carnegie’s theories.

Don’t worry, be happy. And while you’re at it, get BOTOX.

Dear Dr. Raval,
I had feared that my face would become “expressionless” after a BOTOX treatment.
That has not happened. My eyes are bright, my skin shines (thanks to a facial at Rocky Mountain Laser Aesthetics), and my smile is as wide as ever. The only difference is that my frown lines are gone . . . and I didn’t need those anyway.
Elise K., Colorado Springs, CO.

Dear Dr. Raval,
Given the choice between grooves in my cheeks that aged me 10 years and a smooth look that makes me seem perpetually contented, I choose the latter. Thank you.
Cynthia D., Englewood, CO.

Dear Dr. Raval,
Show me a woman who says she loves getting creases in her face and I’ll show you a fibber. I’m one happy patient.
Linda F., Denver CO.

Dear Dr. Raval,
Believe it or not, after I had BOTOX on some pretty deep frown lines, my husband decided he looked too old for me. He made an appointment at Raval Facial Aesthetics too. We’re both thrilled with our new, youthful looks.
Sarah N., Aravada, CO.

Dear Dr. Raval,
I had wanted to try BOTOX for months . . . but I’m pain phobic. Surprise! There wasn’t any. Thank you so much for my new look.
Anna G., Denver, CO.

Jeffrey R. Raval, MD, FACS is a regular on local television including WB 2, KUSA 9 and Fox 31. He’s a triple-boarded facial plastic surgeon and has his facial plastic surgery practice in Cherry Creek North in Denver in companion with his laser clinic, Rocky Mountain Laser Aesthetics, at the same address.

TV segments in which Dr. Raval have been featured include breakthrough medical technology and the doctor’s application of these advanced medical findings to his patient group. One such surgical advancement is the “Denver Nose Job,” a procedure to smooth out the shape of the nose with sheets of collagen (DermaMatrix).  This procedure can quickly and dramatically improve a profile.  The side profile of your face that is… well, a dating profile too, I guess.

The balloon sinuplasty is one of the latest new surgical advancements, and for those with sinusitis, greatest progressions in the ear, nose and throat field.  It is designed to free passageways from congestion allowing drainage.

Dr. Raval knows more than noses. He specializes in a ProFractional laser tattoo removal.  And the best part is, it won’t leave you scarred.

The other liberating service Dr. Raval offers is alleviation from sleep apnea.  It is a minimally invasive procedure that will perfect the palate allowing you (and your significant other) a good night sleep.  Rest assured.

Sun damage to your skin is something you don’t want to be in the dark about.  Rocky Mountain Laser Aesthetics has the technology to digitally analyze your skin and the damage it has endured in order to tailor a skin-care regiment specifically for your needs.  Each person’s skin is different and requires different treatments and maintenance accordingly.  You will be able to see the change you are in for on the Visia system.

Injectables are the fastest and easiest way to refresh your look.  Dr. Raval uses Restylane, Radiesse, Botox and Juvederm depending on your skin and desired results to improve the face.  Procedures range from filling wrinkles and plumping lips to mini facelifts and nose augmentation.

Rocky Mountain Laser Aesthetics also gives back to the community. Dr. Raval participated in a charity benefit in which he donated 10 percent of proceeds from Botox customers to Inner City Health Center.  It feels good to do something for yourself and it feels even better when doing so helps others too.

As a professional in the cosmetic surgery field, Dr. Raval explained how to select a cosmetic surgeon on Colorado & Company, a popular segment of KUSA.

Call for an appointment at Raval Md today, 303-381-FACE (3223) or reach Rocky Mountain Laser Clinic by calling 303-985-8520. The practices are located at 250 Steele St. on the second level, in Cherry Creek North, Denver, CO 80206. You can visit his offices at www.rockymountainlaser.com and www.ravalmd.com.

Gifts of Botox have replaced jewelry for Bridesmaids and the wedding party

No longer are too-taut celebrities like Joan Rivers the poster children for Botox.  Even Olympic athletes are now endorsers. Romanian gymnast and five-time Olymic gold medalist Nadia Comaneci and seven-time swimming gold medalist Mark Spitz have joined in the campaign for injections to achieving a younger look.  Hey, maybe Michael Phelps will be next in a few years.  Read about the eyebrows this is raising in the New York Times. At age 48, the ever-fabulous looking Simon Cowell is so accustomed to Botox injections he told People magazine, “To me, Botox is no more unusual than toothpaste.”

It’s not only celebs that are getting their fill of Botox.  With the median age of brides on the rise, bridal-party botox is the rage.  Honestly, as a 35-year-old taffeta-flaunting bridesmaid knowing your photo will be on your sorority sister bride-to-be’s facebook page within 24 hours, would you rather have a key chain engraved with the date of her special day or a quick fix for your face?  Caution for brides:  when suggesting Botox to the bridal party (especially to your new mother-in-law) be sensitive.  The number one rule is don’t make them feel like they need it (no matter how deep their winkles may be)!  Make it a fun outing.  It’s a modern spin on gal-pals getting their hair done together for the big day.  Just say it’s something you’d like to do to pamper yourself and you would love to have them join you if they like.  For more on “Bridal Beauty Buffets” read this article from the New York Times.

But when it comes down to it don’t choose Botox because it’s en vogue, but because of how it will make you feel. Treatments are popular for a reason.  Read an account of a first-time Botox user in Marie Claire.  It was a gift to herself for her 29th birthday and it gave her much more of a boost than any designer shoes could have.

Women of all ages—Botox can work wonders for you.  For women in mid 20s to late 30s  it can subtly maintain your young face and act as a preventative measure.  And of course ladies, the older you are the more you can benefit.  Go ahead and look and live as young as you can get away with.  Let your age be your little secret.

Contact Dr. Jeffrey Raval for a consultation to see if you are a candidate for Botox injections to look younger and refreshed with no downtime by calling 303.381.FACE (3223). Or call Rocky Mountain Laser Aesthetics at 303-985-8520 and schedule an appointment today.

Rocky Mountain Laser Aesthetics Now using BOTOX to stop sweating

You’re nervous. It’s your first date. Or maybe your first day on a new job. You’re wearing silk. Or maybe your jacket is taffeta. Nothing is more embarrassing than rings of sweat under your arms. It’s distracting to others and makes you self-conscious.

Now there’s an option to pinning armpit liners into your clothing.

BOTOX injections are now being used to stop sweating in the armpits, according to Dr. Jeffrey Raval, owner and medical director of Rocky Mountain Laser Aesthetics located in the Cherry Creek North district in Denver, CO. Injections to stop sweating start at $1000 and depending upon the extent of one’s sweating tendencies can rise to $2,000.

But it’s a fee patients are more than willing to pay, sometimes twice a year, in order to put an end to the embarrassment.

Women and men seek BOTOX injections for sweating problems, says the Doctor, triple-board certified in facial plastic surgery, head and neck surgery and ear/nose/throat by the American Board. Women, in particular, are increasingly getting BOTOX injections to protect against nervous sweating for their weddings. With so many popular wedding dresses being strapless and sleeveless, it becomes ever more important to stop the sweating before it starts, which is exactly what BOTOX does.

BOTOX injected into the underarm area paralyzes the sweat glands, making them inactive in the location of the injections. The treatments last approximately six months. And some patients find that the frequency with which they have to get the injections decreases over time.

Profuse sweating can be caused by any number of things: hormonal changes, growth spurts in teenagers, nervous sweating, to name a few. While antiperspirant tames limited to mild sweating and deodorant controls the scent of the sweat, nothing stops the body from manufacturing sweat like BOTOX.

In fact, says Jeff Raval, MD, FACS, the use of BOTOX to control sweating has changed the lives of many clients he’s treated. “We’ve had patients who’ve lived their lives suffering from sweating that limits their social interaction. With BOTOX injections, they’re relieved of the problem and can wear the clothing they want to without fear of staining it or drawing attention to themselves in a negative way.

If you suffer from the embarrassment of sweating, call Rocky Mountain Laser Aesthetics for an appointment for BOTOX injections today. The number is 303.985.8520.