Q. I just came back from a reunion with my girlfriends. There was one friend of mine that looked particularly great. Her skin had no apparent wrinkles. When I asked her what surgery she had, she said that she just started to shave -- yes shave! What's that about? Is she telling the truth?

A. She's not lying! What your friend is doing is derma-planing. The process involves the sanding, or exfoliating, of the outer layer of skin to improve the the appearance of scars or diminish the appearance of fine wrinkling. This can also be used to improve the penetration of certain chemicals used for skin peels.

Shaving or derma-planing is why we men look so young. Just kidding, but men who shave tend to have fewer fine wrinkles than women because we are constantly removing older skin and rejuvenating our skin by stimulating the skin to recycle.

In our office, derma-planing is usually done by our aesthetician because, in the hands of a well-trained aesthetician, it is a safe and reliable procedure. However, I would not go out and buy a razor for at-home derma-planing. Shaving is an art, learned by many mistakes, as witnessed by many peripubescent young men with gashes on their faces. Leave the shaving to professionals!

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