Skin wrinkles are grooves in the skin. Wrinkles can be on the surface of the skin or can be quite deep.
Skin loses its strength and elasticity, or ability to stretch, as a person ages. This makes the skin less able to smooth out, which is thought to be part of the cause of wrinkles and skin sagging seen in the elderly. Sun exposure also contributes to the development of wrinkles.
Symptoms of wrinkles include deeply formed lines and fine, crinkling crosshatch marks. Skin that is wrinkled may also have a tough, leathery appearance if the person has had a lot of exposure to the sun.
A number of factors can cause wrinkles, including the following: loss of elasticity with agesun damagerepeated facial movements, such as frowningnatural effects of gravity, which cause sagging of the skin as a person ages
People at highest risk for wrinkles include: fair-skinned peoplepeople who spend a lot of time in the sunpeople who have family members with a lot of wrinkles
Wrinkles due to normal aging cannot be prevented. An individual can lower the risk of wrinkles by avoiding excess exposure to the sun.
Wrinkles are diagnosed by their characteristic appearance.
Wrinkles have no long-term effects.
Wrinkles are not contagious and pose no risk to others.
Wrinkles do not need to be treated unless the person wishes to eliminate them for cosmetic reasons. For fine wrinkles, retinoic acid may be applied to the skin to fill in the crevices.
Wrinkles may also be treated by a number of procedures, such as the following: topical creams and ointments, such as tretinoin (i.e., Avita, Renova, Retin-A) or alphahydroxyl acids (AHAs), which peel off top layers of skinchemical peels to remove wrinkled layers, such as the application of lactic, glycolic, or salicylic acidsdermabrasion, a procedure that sands away the top layers of skininjection of substances such as fat or collagen, which is a gelatin-like substance, under the skinlaser surgery, which removes layers of skin. This procedure is used especially for wrinkles around the eyes.botulinum toxin (i.e., Botox), which is used for wrinkles between the eyebrows and around the eyes. The toxin is injected into the muscle that caused the wrinkle. It paralyzes the muscle, so that the wrinkles gradually disappear when the muscle is not used.
The more likely the treatment is to help wrinkling, the more likely it is to have side effects. Side effects can include: color changes in the skinrednessskin scarring
Topical products can cause irritation that looks and feels like chapping. Injectable substances can cause allergic reactions.
Sometimes the treatment for wrinkles results in skin that looks markedly smoother and younger. Other times, improvement of the wrinkles can be minimal and temporary.
Any new or worsening symptoms should be reported to the healthcare professional.
