The purpose of aesthetics

We’re learning more about the aging process and how it occurs at different levels: from the surface of the skin, all the way down to the bony structure. Our purpose in aesthetics is to understand this process and to work with it to highlight the natural beauty of an individual, Ava Shamban, M.D., told attendees at the MauiDerm 2014 meeting. Beauty is an experience of sight, smell and sound. We, as purveyors of beauty, want to make sure that everything that we do on the face makes the face memorable, Dr. Shamban said. She explained her concept of the Signature Feature and how to use it for a successful aesthetic outcome. 

Culturally, our concept of aging is being redefined, Dr. Shamban said. Our ideas have changed about what is normal, possible and expected of our health and quality of life. People want to look and feel better longer. And a lot of literature exists to support that the way a person looks really affects how they feel.

So the purpose of aesthetics is to enhance an individual’s natural beauty, said Dr. Shamban, assistant clinical professor of dermatology at the UCLA-Geffen School of Medicine, and owner and director of AVA MD, Santa Monica and Beverly Hills, Calif. We can do that by individually assessing each patient based on his or her natural attributes, combining that with cultural aesthetics, and marrying that with the universal aesthetic.

These ideas form the basis of what Dr. Shamban calls the Signature Feature concept.

Everyone has a signature feature:

• It’s a natural feature of the face that’s particularly arresting: eyes, mouth, nose, hair, etc. It’s the first thing you notice about someone and you can use the blink test to pick it out, she said.

• The signature feature ties to who the person is; their persona.

• Increasing the signal to noise ratio by reducing the background noise, you can highlight that natural feature.