The neck ages faster than the face and gets attention last. People who have maintained their face carefully for a decade frequently arrive having never treated the neck at all, and the mismatch is what makes them uncomfortable in photographs. It is usually the first place someone’s age becomes visible regardless of how well the face has been looked after.
Sam Assassa, MD trained and practiced in internal medicine before moving into aesthetics and is an associate member of the American College of Physicians. He founded Beverly Hills Aesthetics in 1995 and is board certified in Internal Medicine.
Why the Neck Ages Faster
The skin here is structurally different from facial skin and it is treated worse.
It is thinner and has fewer oil glands, so it dries more readily and creases more easily.
It gets less protection. Most people who apply sunscreen to their face stop at the jawline, and decades of that adds up.
It moves constantly. Every turn of the head, every swallow, and every glance downward folds it.
Screen posture. Sustained downward head position creases the skin horizontally in a way that has become noticeably more common.
Three Different Problems
Horizontal lines, sometimes called necklace lines, are creases running across the neck. Some people have them from childhood as natural crease lines, and they deepen with age, sun, and posture.
Vertical bands are the edges of the platysma muscle tightening into visible cords, most apparent when speaking or tensing. They also pull downward on the jawline from below.
Crepey, loose skin is a texture and elasticity problem rather than a line problem, producing a fine wrinkled surface that does not smooth when the skin is stretched.
Most necks have some of each, and they respond to entirely different treatments, which is why identifying the dominant one comes first.
How to Tell Which You Have
Tense your neck as though grimacing. If vertical cords stand out, you have platysmal banding.
Gently stretch the skin sideways. If the fine wrinkling disappears, it is crepiness and skin quality. If distinct horizontal creases remain, those are set lines.
Look at your jawline while you do it. If the jaw appears sharper when the neck is relaxed than when tensed, muscle pull is contributing to your lower face as well.
How Neck Wrinkles Are Treated
- Non-surgical neck lift relaxes the platysma to soften banding and release the downward pull on the jaw.
- Restylane Skin Boosters improve hydration and firmness in thin neck skin, which is one of the better applications for this treatment.
- Skin tightening firms mild to moderate laxity across a series of sessions.
- Microneedling improves texture and fine horizontal lines.
- Décolleté treatment where the chest shows the same changes, which it usually does.
Where skin has genuinely loosened and hangs, non-surgical treatment improves the appearance without resolving it, and surgery produces a considerably better result.
Learn About Non-Surgical Nasal Hump Removal in Beverly Hills
Dr. Assassa will assess your platysma, your skin quality, and your set lines, and tell you what each approach can realistically change. Request a consultation or schedule your appointment online.
For more information or to find out the right option for you, call Beverly Hills Aesthetics at 424-284-8933 Or Request a Complimentary Consultation with Dr. Assassa. We look forward to meeting you.