As women age, and go through menopause, they often find the skin of the face has lost tone, and has become flaccid. This is because of the loss of hyaluronic acid, and natural breakdown of collagen and elastin in the extrinsically-aged skin. Among the many factors that contribute to this are hormonal changes, dehydration, and exposure to sunlight and UV radiation (which we can observe from the age-spots on the patient’s face). In fact, elastosis is the primary consequence of photo-aged skin. When the patient pulls on the skin, it is unlikely to bounce back to its original place, and this shows the decreased elasticity.
For the patient experiencing elastosis, flaccid and inelastic skin is the result of years of UV exposure,and dehydration. Daily regimen has very much to do with the patient’s current condition. By over-exfoliating the skin regularly, but not moisturizing enough, she is pulling moisture out of the skin, which is already dehydrated. The patient needs to include hyaluronic-acid and peptide based serums and crèmes into her regimen, as well as avoid the sun, and remember to apply sunscreen every 2-3 hours.