Sarah Safa: The Evolution Of The Face

See Sarah Safa at this year’s Modern Beauty Con on May 7th at Boston Park Plaza. Purchase your Conference Pass here. 

Call it the evolution of the face  —  Sarah Safa, MS, PA-C, one of the top injectors in the mid-Atlantic region sat down with us to talk about the shifting focus of the face and the MedSpa industry as a whole.

“It is interesting to see how the focus of the face has changed. We started at the top of the head, and we’ve made our way down the face over time” Sarah shares. 

“Now it is interesting to see us move from using basic techniques as I like to say, to more functional or advanced injectors. We are finding ourselves taking more of a pan facial approach. When you think about the face, you cannot afford to leave anything out because if you really want someone to look natural you have to solidify harmony and balance. And that now includes the jawline and the chin, too,” Sarah explained.

The importance of lower face rejuvenation is Sarah’s presentation at this year’s Modern Beauty Con entitled, A Comprehensive Approach To Lower Face Rejuvenation. Sarah took some time to chat with us about lower face rejuvenation and the industry as a whole. 

Some patients show concern about venturing beyond foreheads. What do you tell them? Can you tease a little of your presentation?

Sarah Safa:  To be honest with you, it is a healthy fear even for injectors, not just patients, to be cautious when injecting anywhere on the face. It is such a vascular, rich region. I would say the majority of fear we see from our injectors is just a lack of understanding about the anatomy and for patients perhaps being fearful of an unnatural outcome. 

I am so excited that a lot of our newer products now available in today’s market are offering a safe and effective way to correct these areas that patients perhaps might have been wary of in the past. 

My talk will delve into the importance of anatomy and a general top-down approach as well as discussing the various products that offer a multitude of outcomes for our patients in general in the lower face. I will review some of the technical aspects as far as what to inject into this region and how to do so safely. I’ll be covering the posterior to anterior aspect of the jawline and creating that beautiful architecture that encompasses the whole mandible. I also want to go over current best practices and a functional approach. The jawline is important, and we have to respect it. Social media calls it that snatched jawline—those aren’t my words, at least not the ones I use in my office (laughs). 

Keep in mind social media is our friend, but it’s not always our friend. We’re seeing a lot of unrealistic and filtered outcomes on individuals. And I think it gets a little intimidating sometimes when the syringe is in your hand and you’re trying to deliver those outcomes to meet the patients’ expectations.  

Can you weigh in on non-surgical precision with laser treatments?

Sarah Safa: I love lasers. You cannot create beautiful outcomes with just injecting people because it is like making a bed with dirty sheets. You need to make sure skin quality is healthy not only from a healing standpoint, but for optimal visual results as well. I make sure the tissue envelope is in its absolute best condition prior to injecting in most cases. 

The industry is expanding so quickly—is that a challenge?

Sarah Safa: With so many medical professionals wanting to get into the industry the educational platforms are struggling to keep up. They’re overburdened by requests and seasoned independent educators do not have enough time to commit to training. 

We are also starting to see profit-seeking individuals offering educational courses without solid fundamental knowledge, scientific backing, or product neutrality. These non-credible weekend courses in addition to quick educational tidbits on social media mislead many providers into believing they are ready to treat patients with advanced aesthetics techniques right out of the gate. This mentality is lowering the bar in our industry, and we should be focusing on raising the bar in our industry. I do commend the pharmaceutical companies. They’re trying to get more education out there, but they’re also trying to sell more products than ever. In a sense, there is a conflictual tug of war game being pulled here.  

Join us for Sarah’s presentation on “A Comprehensive Approach to Lower Face Rejuvenation” at Modern Beauty Con on May 7, 2023, at the Boston Park Plaza.