DALLAS, Aug. 7 (UPI) -- Many think the human face ages uniformly, but distinct compartments of fat age at different rates, Texas researchers say.
The findings, published Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, challenge previously held theories regarding aging -- doing a whole facelift.
Study lead author Dr. Joel Pessa of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas says everyone believed face fat is one confluent mass, which eventually gets weighed down by gravity, creating sagging skin. However, the face is made up of individual fat compartments that gain and lose fat at different times and different rates as people age.
The study involved injecting different types of dye into facial cavities of 30 cadavers. After 24 hours of settling time, the dye, rather than permeating the entire face, stayed in separate areas -- showing facial compartments have boundaries between them that act like fences.
The findings show not only why people age the way they do and why every part of the face, from the eyelids to the cheeks, ages differently, explains Pessa.
