Blog

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Is Accutane still available? Is it safe? What is the difference between Absorbica, Accutane, Isotretinion, Myorisan, Amnesteen, Clavaris

I have practiced Dermatology and Cosmetic surgery since 1995. I have treated several hundred patients with Isotretinion and its generic equivalents. I can tell you without any doubt that this is one of the best and most effective medications on the market today.

Accutane is derived from Vitamin A and shrinks the sebaceous glands and pores and can significantly reduce acne. Ninety percent of my patients never have acne again. 10% need a second a rarely a third course.  Unfortunately this medication is widely misunderstood.  A very small percentage of patients can have side effects ranging from dry eyes, and dry skin to mood disorders such as depression of inflammation of the digestive tract. Most of these side effects are mild and they do resolve after stopping the medication. It breaks my hard to see a patient experiencing deep cystic and scarring acne who is afraid to even try low dose Accutane.

My advice is this: find a good dermatologist, make sure it is right for you and try a course of it.

At any given point I have between 20 and 50 patients on Accutane.

Yours,

323 653 7700

www.foreveryoung.net

www.westlakelaser.com

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Is Accutane still available? Is it safe? What is the difference between Absorbica, Accutane, Isotretinion, Myorisan, Amnesteen, Clavaris

I have practiced Dermatology and Cosmetic surgery since 1995. I have treated several hundred patients with Isotretinion and its generic equivalents. I can tell you without any doubt that this is one of the best and most effective medications on the market today.

Accutane is derived from Vitamin A and shrinks the sebaceous glands and pores and can significantly reduce acne. Ninety percent of my patients never have acne again. 10% need a second a rarely a third course.  Unfortunately this medication is widely misunderstood.  A very small percentage of patients can have side effects ranging from dry eyes, and dry skin to mood disorders such as depression of inflammation of the digestive tract. Most of these side effects are mild and they do resolve after stopping the medication. It breaks my hard to see a patient experiencing deep cystic and scarring acne who is afraid to even try low dose Accutane.

My advice is this: find a good dermatologist, make sure it is right for you and try a course of it.

At any given point I have between 20 and 50 patients on Accutane.

Yours,

323 653 7700

www.foreveryoung.net

www.westlakelaser.com

Chemical peels

I have 30 different laser and light sources but still use a variety of chemical peels at my office.

Some patients don’t respond well to lasers and have a better experience with chemical peels.

Chemical peels are generally speaking milder and more superficial than lasers.

The drawback is that here is no heat (as is the case with lasers) and not a drastic tightening.

On the other hand certain conditions such as Melasma do respond better to a series of less invasive chemical peels.

We offer:

1. Glycolic facial peels (10%, 20%, 30%, 50%, and 70%)
2. TCA peels (Tri- Chlro-Acetic Acid) 10%, 20%, 30%, 50%
3. Jessner peels
4. Phenol  Peels

Glycolic peels are mild and basically have little to no downtime.

TCA and Jessner peels are considered medium depth peels and help with fine lines, discolorations, and sun spots such as Actinic and Seberrhoic Keratosis. Phenol peels are rarely done these days. It can be toxic to the kidneys and the healing time can be several weeks.

Lasers are much more effective and safer than Penol Peels. The reason for this is that lasers have a very predictable and controlable depth of penetration.

I always ask my patients about history of cold sores. When performing a medium or deep peel the patient may need to be pre-medicated with an antiviral medication such as Acyclovir.

Chemical peels can be combined with other procedures such as laser or Ultrasound tightening and more. Finally; chemical peels can be very affordable. Glycolic peels are $150 and full face TCA peels of face, neck, chest with sedation are between $1000-$1500

Come in for a complimentary consultation to see if you are a good candidate.

Please click under procedures and Chemical peels and rteview our before and after photos.

Yours,

Dr David Rahimi

323 653 7700

One of the problems I have encountered is that inexperienced surgeons often use large cannulas to harvest fat. This, in turn, can cause large and unsightly indentations that can be very difficult to reverse.

In this case my patient saw a surgeon for fat grafting to the face. Fat was harvested from the lateral thighs and injected to the face. The facial fat was lumpy (that is a different story) but the area from which the fat was harvested become indented and saggy. Many years later she is still hesitant to put on a bathy suite or be intimate with her partner.

Two or more sessions may be needed but ultimately these defects can be fixed.

Please come in for a consultation and allow us to help you.

Yours,

Dr David R.

323 653 7700

www.foreveryoung.net

www.westlakelaser.com

There are several modalities to lift up the eyebrows. Surgical techniques work well but involve cutting, possible scarring and downtime. Non-surgical modalities such as Ultherapy and Thermacool CPT help raise up eyebrows without cutting surgery. The results look natural but only last for a year or two. Another option to elevate eyebrows without cutting surgery is Botox. Judicious placement of about 50 units of Botox in the forehead and around the eyes can elevate eyebrows several millimeters. Again; the drawback is that the results only last about 4 months.

Finally, one of my favorite ways to raise eyebrows and restore balance to the face is to inject long lasting fillers into the temple and lateral forehead area. Results are immediate and can last for several years. 

One of the sign of aging is hollowness in the temple area. This can lower eyebrows and cause a hollow or skeletonized look.  1-2 Syringes of a filler such as Radiesse, Bellafill, Juvederm Volluma or Juvederm Vollure can make a significant difference.

Please come in for a complimentary consultation. Bring photos from 5 or even 10 years ago and let’s talk about making you look younger without cutting surgery.

Yours,

Dr. David Rahimi, MD,FAAD, FAACS

323 653 7700

www.foreveryoung.net

www.westlakelaser.com

Very few treatments have a 100% satisfaction rate.

Asclera comes close to it.

https://www.realself.com/asclera

Over 50% of women in the US have leg veins that bother them.

Prolonged standing on your feet, pregnancy, genetic predisposition, obesity and more contribute to varicose veins.

Asclera can significantly reduce these unsightly telangectasias and smaller blood vessels.

Larger blood vessels that are symptomatic often need surgical intervention.

If you are hesitant to have surgery or vein stripping you may be a candidate

for the more conservative Asclera injection technique.

call us for a free consultation

cost $500-$750 per session

2-3 sessions over 3 months are needed

6333 Wilshire Blvd Suite 409

Los Angeles Ca 90048

323 653 7700

Bellafill is an FDA approved permannet filler for deep acne scars and naso-labial folds.

I have now treated several dozen patients with this permanent filler with great results.

Dr David Rahimi

Many patients in their 50s and 60s want a facelift but are not ready for a cutting procedure. We have 5 modalities to tighten and lift the face without cutting. We offer Ultherapy, Thermage CPT, Pelleve, Thermi and  Venus Viva Radiofrequency treatments. Each of these procedures has its own benefit and drawbacks. Some need to be repeated 5 times for a visible and long lasting result.  Others only need to be performed once but are quite uncomfortable.

We often combine procedures such as Ultherapy with a cold laser or Mixto fractional Co2 laser for an even better result. We call it a "Super Ulthera" treatment.

All invasive procedures are performed personally by me.

My 20 year clinical experience as a Dermatologist and Surgeon allows you to get the best possible outcome in a safe and clean environment.

Please e mail me photos and we can tell you if you are a good candidate with “Forever Young  Super Ultherapy”

afshinrahimi@yahoo.com

323 653-7700

Yours,

Dr. David Rahimi

Hand Rejuvenation using a combination of laser and Radiesse

October 2018

Most patients neglect the back of their hands and their chest area. They expose themselves to the damaging rays of the sun.  Brown spots and wrinkles on the back of the hands are one of the most telling sign of aging.

All of these sign can be reversed with a combination of fillers and laser. The hollowness on the back of the hands can be filled in with 2 Syringes of Radiesse. I use a Cannula to distribute the filler over the entire hand. This avoids excessive bruising and swelling.

Brown spots are removed using a combination of Mixto Co2 laser and chemical peels.

All of this is performed under local anesthesia and with minimal downtime. These results generally last several years.

Cost $1500-$2000

Please e mail me photos and we can tell you if you are a good candidate with “Forever Young hand Rejuvenation”

afshinrahimi@yahoo.com

323 653-7700

Yours,

Dr. David Rahimi

As a Dermatologist I see several patients a week who want to have their moles removed. Mole removal for a purely cosmetic reason is quite tricky and I spend a considerate amount of time educating my patients on this topic.

Pigmented moles or moles that have increased in size or changed color or bled need to be removed and examined under a microscope. We diagnose many basal cell cancers, squamous cell cancers and the occasional nodular melanoma this way.

However; most of my patients wish to remove their moles for purely aesthetic reasons. If the mole is skin colored it can be shaved off flush with the skin. No sutures are required and the scar is practically erased using a Co2 fractional laser.

Darker cosmetic and benign moles need to be cut and sutured to fully eliminate their roots. On the face this can leave an unsightly and largely unacceptable cosmetic result. I generally discourage my patients from having flat dark moles cut from their faces. The scars are usually worse than the mole.

I hope this was helpful to you.

Cosmetic Consultation is free and we would be happy to schedule an appointment for you

Yours,

Dr David Rahimi

323 653 7700

New Procedure Announcement

10/2018

Neck and Jowl lift without cutting Surgery

I have developed a novel combination therapy that uses Smartlipo Triplex and nano fractional Radiofrequency (venus Viva) conurrently to tighten the jowls and neck area.

Smartlipo Triplex liquefies the fat under the chin using 3 very small incisions. Each incision is smaller than the back of a pencil erasure. These entry points are so small that no sutures are needed to close the skin. The procedure is performed using local anesthesia and mild oral sedation. Excess fat is removed from the chin and jowl area. The over lying skin is treated with superficial radiofrequency energy and micro needling. 

The entire procedure takes less than an hour and healing time is 3-4 days.

Cost: $4000-$5000 (includes surgeons fee, OR fee, Sedationa nd after care)

Please e mail me photographs of your neck and I will let you know if you are a good candidate for the combination treatment.

afshinrahimi@yahoo.com

Cosmetic Consultation is free and we would be happy to schedule an appointment for you

Yours,

Dr. David Rahimi

When dealing with nodules in the lip it is important to know what material was used to augment the lips. The treatment really varies depending on what was used and how long ago the treatment was performed. Occasional Hyaluronic acid compounds (Restylane, Juvederm, Volbella, etc) can ball up and cause small bumps. These usually resolve in a couple of weeks with massage or dilute injection of a steroid anti-inflammatory solution called kenelog.  Another option is to dissolve the Hyaluronic acid completely with a protein called Hyaluronidase. This material is injected directly into the affected area. Results are quite impressive and visible within 2-3 days.

Another condition that is much more difficult to treat is called 'Bio-film". We don't exactly understand why some patients basically develop a hard film around the implants in their lips/face! These nodules are also injected with Kenelog steroid, treated with Oral antibiotics, and anti-metabolites such as 5FU. If several injections over a few weeks does not dissolve the nodules they can be excised.

Finally; non FDA products such as Silicone and Bioalcamid (seen more frequently in patients from Mexico and South America) don't respond well to steroid injections and can cause severe deformities. These "granulomas" need to be excised. There is always scarring and downtime with excision of these inflammatory nodules in the lip and I perform it as a last resort.The incision is placed inside the mucosa and the hard nodules are surgically removed. Downtime and swelling/bruising is about one week.

Call us if you have irregular bumps or nodules in your lip or face and wish an evaluation to have these lesions removed.

323 653 7700

Dr David Rahimi

Please read about Dr. David Rahimi's interview with Sean Arenas from Playboy.com

Cosmetic Surgery for men is no longer an absolute Taboo. Non surgical modalities and "no downtime" procedures are allowing men to look better with little or no downtime. The key is to look natural.

Please come in for a complimentary consultation

323 653 7700

Zonya Villatoro

Office manager

Dr. A. David Rahimi, lead surgeon at Forever Young in Los Angeles, has seen a dramatic increase in male patients in less than twenty years. “When I finished my training in 1999, maybe 5 percent of my patients were men,” he says. “Now, one-third of my patients are men.” Advances in surgical and nonsurgical techniques have made cosmetic enhancements more readily acceptable. “Twenty years ago, all we had available was cutting surgery,” he notes. “We now have many, many options to tighten up the skin, remove brown spots and fine lines, and make someone look healthier and younger.”

Dr. Rahimi, on the other hand, has a more conservative outlook. “More and more men will speak about receiving cosmetic surgery, but it’s still taboo because, unfortunately, some practitioners go overboard. They do a little and it looks good, so the patient asks for more. The [surgeon] agrees and they make the client look done or fake,” says Dr. Rahimi. “And I don’t think men are going to talk at parties with each other about getting Botox or fillers,” he adds. “It’ll always be something that they do but not readily admit to—but it’s becoming more acceptable in our society.”

 http://www.playboy.com/articles/men-cosmetic-surgery-aging