As we age, a loss of collagen and elastin in our skin can lead to looser facial tone and the appearance of fine lines and creases. Losing this protein, combined with a natural loss of fat in the face, can hollow the upper cheeks and create heaviness above the jaw line (jowl) and around the chin (marionette lines), giving a tired and aged look.

Sometimes referred to as the ‘non-surgical facelift’, the Thread Lift is a minimally-invasive treatment that lifts sagging areas of the face without the need for sedation or a hospital stay. It is performed under local anaesthetic and takes as little as 30 minutes, with patients able to walk-out and return home a short while after.

A thread lift can help improve the appearance of sagging cheeks, deep lines and wrinkles, jowls, loss of facial volume, forehead wrinkles and even offer jaw line redefinition. The procedure involves lifting different parts of the face using specialised threads without the need for surgical incisions.

The benefits of a thread lift include instant and long lasting results, minimal downtime, an increase in natural collagen production and no stitches required.

1. Polydioxanone (PDO), which is often used for stitching in surgeries, lasts from six to twelve months depending on the circumstances. The threads will typically be dissolved within no more than one year, but help stimulates the production of collagène in your skin which is an effect that can sometimes last until well after the thread has gone.

2. Poly-L-Lactic Acid (PLLA), another material often chosen for surgical sutures, is even more effective at stimulating collagène production with a thread lifetime of more than two years. Once dissolved, the material breaks down into lactate, glucose, carbon dioxide and water, and has become one of the commonly used materials by advanced thread lift doctors for treatment in Singapore. Even after the thread has dissolved, collagène production can last for up to one more year.

There are many types of PDO threads – and this can be confusing for patients, and even doctors.

In general, PDO threads can be divided into floating, non-barbed threads and barbed threads. These can be further sub-classified in several ways:

Cutting barbs vs molding barbs

You may have heard of fancy names like “double screw” or “tornado”, or “heart barbs”. They all refer to threads in one of the categories described above. In addition, PDO threads come in different thickness and length.

These all affect their quality, tensile strength, effectiveness