“Home of Younger Skin” (HOYS) program: Defining the change in apparent skin age after facial treatment with botulinum toxin and dermal fillers

BACKGROUND: Objective and subjective scales estimating improvement in both clinical studies and clinical practice are becoming more mainstream. However, the use of a system to analyze improvement in aging with a multiplicity of treatments would be useful. The purpose of this study was to use a recently developed educative and patient self-assessment program (“Home of Younger Skin”, HOYS) for assessment of the effect of facial treatment with neurotoxins and filling agents in terms of decreasing apparent age. METHODS: Four patients underwent facial treatments with neurotoxins and dermal fillers by an experienced blinded physician and were assessed twice utilizing an age analysis program (HOYS), once before and then 6 weeks after completion of treatment. RESULTS: The four patients showed an average reduction in apparent facial age of 7.5 years. The individual “regions” differed in their reductions. The upper face showed a decline of 13.5 years, the periorbital region 9.25 years, the mid face 4.5 years, and the lower face 12.25 years. CONCLUSION: Use of this previously validated self-assessment program may prove to be a useful measure of patient-reported improvement with treatment.