In Focus: Oldies but Goodies

Back to Brick and Mortar: BTL Opens New Body Shops to Foster Facetime

The first two BTL Body Boutiques have opened in the NoHo neighborhood of New York City and in Beverly Hills.

Billed as a key access point for the medical community, the locations will act as an immersive storefront offering medical aesthetic professionals a one-stop shop, BTL says. Company representatives will be on site to provide hands-on education and training, show product demonstrations, and to sell BTL devices.

“We always look to lead by breaking barriers and thinking out of the box, which is why we are proud to be the first aesthetics device brand to offer a space that covers every touchpoint from education to final sale,” explains John Ferris, Vice President of US Marketing. “BTL Aesthetics strives to build and foster a community. For us it goes beyond the therapies we create. A brick and mortar piece was so important as it offers us more opportunities to have valuable facetime with those who are part of the larger BTL community.”

The showroom-like spaces feature the brand’s award-winning technologies, including Emsculpt, Emsella, Emtone, Exilis ULTRA, and the brand’s latest innovation: Emsculpt NEO, which targets fat while building muscle using RF and HIFEM.

“Having a physical location that will house product and offer training and education will be an innovative resource to the industry,” says Scott Mills, Vice President of Sales at BTL. “This tool will be invaluable in continuing to deepen the relationships with our partners.”

A New Normal: Zoom Dysmorphia Results in Uptick in Cosmetic Consults

During the pandemic, there was a shift to remote work, and demand for video conferencing increased, which sired a corresponding rise in the number of patients with negative self-perceptions seeking cosmetic consultations, a new survey shows.

In a survey of more than 100 board-certified dermatologists, more than 50 percent reported a rise in cosmetic consultations, despite being in the midst of a pandemic. The findings were presented at the AAD VMX 2021.

“Society quickly transitioned to a remote way of working and socializing during the COVID-19 pandemic, communicating largely through video calls during a stressful and isolating time,” says Shadi Kourosh, MD, MPH, FAAD, assistant professor of dermatology at Harvard Medical School in Boston, director of community health in the department of dermatology at Massachusetts General Hospital, and director of the center for Laser Surgery and Aesthetics at Brown Dermatology. “As reliance on video calls increased, we started seeing the consequences of how prolonged time staring back at yourself significantly impacted our patients in a phenomenon we call ‘Zoom dysmorphia.’”

Zoom dysmorphia is an altered or skewed negative perception of one’s body image that results from spending extended amounts of time on video calls, she says.

“What was alarming about our research results was that 86 percent of dermatologists surveyed who were fielding these cosmetic concerns reported that their patients referenced video conferencing as the reason for seeking cosmetic consultation,” says Dr. Kourosh. “The increased time on-camera, coupled with the unflattering effects of front-facing cameras, triggered a concerning and subconscious response unique to the times we’re living in. In addition, many people were also spending more time on social media viewing highly edited photos of others—triggering unhealthy comparisons to their own images on front-facing cameras, which we know is distorted and not a true reflection.”

As more people work from home, studies show that 77 percent of people join video meetings on laptops or desktop computers, 31 percent on mobile phones, and 13 percent on tablets. Zoom estimates daily meeting participants grew from approximately 10 million in December 2019 to more than 300 million in April 2020.

“Unfortunately, this is the lens in which people are viewing themselves today, and it’s not accurate and can eventually become unhealthy,” says Dr. Kourosh. “Technology has certainly helped us navigate this pandemic in many ways, but it’s also important to be aware of its limitations and potential to impact how we feel about ourselves.”

Burt’s Bees Bakuchiol May Offer New Option to Anti-Aging Gold Standard

Burt’s Bees bakuchiol bests retinol when it comes to promoting expression of certain anti-aging genes, according to a poster presented at the 2021 American Academy of Dermatology Virtual Meeting Experience.

And other new research supports the moisturization and skin barrier benefits of Burt’s Bees proprietary natural hydration complex, synergistic antioxidant activity of green tea and sacred lotus blend to protect from blue light-induced oxidative stress.

“Research findings demonstrate the effectiveness of Burt’s Bees natural-origin ingredients to support the skin’s moisture barrier and help address signs of aging, including blue light-induced photodamage,” says Hemali Gunt, PhD, head of clinical and scientific affairs at Burt’s Bees, in a news release. “Especially in today’s world of changing priorities and unique ways of connecting, we take effective skin care for patients seriously.”

In one study, bakuchiol increased both HIF-1a and SIRT-1 gene expression, whereas retinol, at the same concentration, showed an opposite trend. The study further defined and validated how bakuchiol exerts anti-aging benefits more effectively than retinol.

When researchers investigated the mechanism of action behind the clinical benefits of a natural hydration complex on the skin barrier, in vitro assessment identified that the natural hydration complex significantly increased gene expression of UDP – glucose ceramide glucosyltransferase (UGCG) and involucrin, which are important for lipid synthesis and epidermal differentiation. Clinical comparison utilizing objective methods demonstrated significantly improved hydration in treated, moderately dry skin versus untreated control over 24 hours, indicating skin barrier benefits of the natural hydration complex.

In a third poster, researchers evaluated the ability of a proprietary nature-based blend at various concentrations to see if it protected against blue light damage. An in vitro test model assessed reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation following blue light exposure. The proprietary nature-based, synergistic blend of green tea and lotus reduced ROS formation generated by blue light, the study showed. Results established the blend as a potential treatment in helping fight signs of blue light-induced photoaging.

“In today’s socially distanced world, we are spending more time than ever in front of computer screens and cell phones, which is increasingly being shown to induce free radical expression, leading to inflammation and skin aging,” adds Stanley Levy, MD, a board-certified dermatologist in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and study investigator. “Our research demonstrated that a proprietary nature-based complex of green tea and lotus can work together synergistically to reduce the formation of ROS generated by blue light exposure, establishing its potential as an effective treatment for the prevention of blue light-induced premature photoaging.”

Improving CME: SuperVision180 Launches with New Approach to Aesthetic Education

Offering courses in more than a dozen aesthetic topics with more on the way, SuperVision180 is now offering education and CME credits in the medical aesthetics space. The platform features live procedural webinars, online courses, and hands-on classes.

“This is not Zoom,” CEO Tom Kristy says. “It’s much better. We have high-definition, medical-grade cameras zeroing in on each procedure in extreme detail down to the suture level.”

SuperVision180 says it offers a unique accelerated training model that provides a fast track to competency. Novices start with high quality online courses covering the basic science of each procedure accompanied by didactic lectures. The online programs are step-by-step and include high quality videos, animated lectures and integrated exams that test knowledge, with CMEs awarded after passing the tests. Online courses can usually be completed in one day or less. After the online courses, students can join hands-on training classes to perfect skills working with luminary trainers. Classes are held in cities across the US and CMEs are awarded at the conclusion of the classes.