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Monday 9 October 2017

Treatment of leg veins. A case study.

Leg veins are a common complaint.  They can be symptomatic and untreated can cause complications such as eczema and leg ulcers.

Unfortunately Varicose Vein treatments are often not available on the NHS. Successful treatments usually require a combination of modalities.

A patient journey starts with a thorough assessment that usually includes a duplex ultrasound scan that we perform in the clinic. It is best to have this scan performed by the treating surgeon. If the scan reveals underlying hidden varicose veins these have to be addressed before treatment of surface veins.

We are grateful for our patient for allowing us to use her photos. She has had endovenous laser therapy, microphlebectomy and sclerotherapy treatments. She is very pleased with her results which will further improve over next few months. She was able to go on a sunny holiday and wear shorts after 20 years. What is remarkable is that modern technology now allows us to treat leg veins without general anaesthesia or hospitalization. This also allows treatments as a day case without prolonged recovery period.
It is a mistake to treat thread veins without making sure there are no hidden veins lurking beneath the surface. Make sure you see a practitioner who can at least use a screening ultrasound to make sure you are treated the right way.

You can find out more information here 

Call us on 0800 0430737 or fill our appointment form to arrange your consultation.





Sunday 18 June 2017

Facial Rejuvenation Experts- Coltishall Cosmetic Clinic

There is no shortage of practitioners from a variety of backgrounds offering Dermal fillers and Botox injections. The trouble is that a majority of these practitioners do not understand how the face ages and/ or have a limited number of treatments to offer. Any specialist mechanic needs a properly resourced toolbox not just one or two tools. Same thing with facial rejuvenation. If your practitioner only has one or two tools, that is all they can offer you, whether or not it is best for you. 
Someone with 30 years experience in general practice or nursing maybe an expert in asthma management or vaccination but it does not make them an expert in facial rejuvenation- although they may make such claims. So do check that your practitioner has experience in procedures they are offering you.
Concepts of beauty also change over time. So we need a balanced approach rather than too much of the wrong thing!
Let me give you some examples. In the 1970's when we did not have the modern treatments and technology all we had was facelift surgeries. Surgeons devised extensive invasive techniques in order to produce the tightest and longest lasting results that they could. We all know the consequences, the results were too tight 'Wind Tunnel' look faces but they were not necessarily young or pleasing to look at.
Now such surgeries have fallen out of favour and we are in an era of over filling. What I call 'pillow faces'. Sadly it is not only the patients, but I see practitioners with such appearances. Looking filled has almost become the norm!
When Botox first came out it was the norm to see frozen expressionless faces. Patient themselves are now moving away from too much Botox and requesting less of the stuff so they still have moment but look softer and well rested.

So what is our approach of facial rejuvenation at the coltishall clinic?
Our approach is to produce natural looking, pleasing and harmonious results. We recommend that you bring your old photo that you like to your consultation. We can see how your face has changed and try and reverse these changes.

What happens with facial ageing and how we can help?
1. Loss of skin quality, sun exposure and smoking related changes.
Solution- skincare and skin rejuvenation treatments. You need a machine or laser that is suitable for your unique concerns. We are one of the very few clinics in the country who have invested in the full range of specialised dermatological lasers. Some practitioners claim their laser can do everything but that simply is not true. Often a combinations of machines are required to produce best results. Dedicated Medical Lasers are advanced tools and much better than cheap devices that have become widely available to non-medical personnel since deregulation!

2. Hyper dynamic wrinkles or in simpler terms wrinkles caused by over use or overactivity of facial expression muscles.
Solution-judicious use of botulinum toxin injections.

3. Loss of volume- we lose bone, fat and muscle resulting in facial deflation and sagging of tissues.
Solution-facial fillers to restore lost volume and surgery to reposition sagging tissues and remove excess skin. 
Fillers have come a long way and today's fillers are natural, highly purified products which are extremely unlikely to produce allergic reactions or other problems. One caveat is to stay away from permanent fillers. The only permanent filler I use is your own fat to restore the facial volume.

4. Sagging skin- gravity and reduction in skin quality can cause skin to stretch and sag. If you have not had the benefit of preventative treatments or there is significant skin excess surgery is required. However, you do not need extensive surgery under general anaesthesia. By improving your skin quality and replacing lost volume you are less likely to need extensive surgery.  Extensive surgery has fallen out of favour and less invasive surgery under local anaesthesia is in. This is what we like to offer. Extent of surgery is also tailored to your specific requirements.
 
© Coltishall Clinic 2017

Sunday 29 January 2017

Safe and effective Laser Hair Removal for all skin types. Why it is a great idea to see us.

When it comes to laser hair and tattoo removal it is the wild west in this country. There is no shortage of new places opening up at every corner. We are seeing increasing number of patients who are either dissatisfied or have been harmed because of poorly trained and unregulated providers and cheap copycat or downright dangerous and unapproved machines.

Nd-Yag Laser
As we all know one size does not fit all. There is simply no machine which is suitable for every person's needs. With this in mind we have invested heavily in modern high-end medical machines that have undergone rigorous testing and evaluation. All our therapists also undergo rigorous initial and on going training in laser safety.

We have helped thousands of patients remove unwanted hair, ingrowing hair and rashes, pseudofolliculitis barbae (razor bumps) and even helped patients with poly-cystic ovaries.

Thanks to our proven gold-standard lasers and extensive experience we are able to treat every skin type- from very fair to dark skin patients.

Nd-Yag laser is great for treating Asian and Afro-Caribbean patients.

Caucasian patients are generally treated with Alexandrite laser or  IPL machine made by worlds leading medical laser company- Lumenis corporation.
Alexandrite laser

Lumenis IPL
Sometimes additional lasers are required so we also have a selection of diode lasers. In general though we prefer our three "big-boys" as pictured here.

So if you have wanted safe and effective Laser Hair Removal at an affordable price-come and see us. It simply is not worth taking chances and trying anything other than a reputable clinic with lot's of experience and FDA approved medical lasers.