Last summer, when Kim Campbell wore her first sleeveless dress of the season, she noticed sagging and dimpling on her arm. “I tried firming creams, spent a lot of money and didn’t see any results,” says the 52-year-old Astoria resident, who works in optical sales.
“I knew the operation left scars and I didn’t think anything else could be done, so I started wearing cardigans over everything.”
But then Campbell heard about a new procedure performed by Upper East Side plastic surgeon Sharon Giese, in which Radiesse — a filler injected into wrinkles — is used to stimulate collagen production to thicken the skin. He charges $1,250 for each injection and says one per arm is usually enough.
“I had lines above my elbow [were] almost left after two weeks, and there [was] overall tightening,” says Campbell. “It’s been almost a year now. and when i look at old photos i remember how much i hated my hands. Now I’m happy with them.”
To combat the dreaded “wings”, conscious women are increasingly turning to cosmetic procedures. Arm lifts, or brachioplasty, increased 13.5 percent between 2014 and 2015, according to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. Other batwing-busting treatments include injectables — such as Radiesse and a new filler called Sculptra — radiofrequency and ultrasound machines, and liposuction.
Arm shaking can hit middle age hard.
“The skin on the hands starts to loosen around age 40 and can form a ‘batwing’ that gets progressively worse,” says Robert Jetter, a Park Avenue plastic surgeon who has added a second, optional step to his brachioplasty surgeries to help minimize scarring. He charges $7,500 to $10,000 for the procedure.
“I’m a big skeptic, but this really worked. My arms look slimmer and the skin is tighter.’
– Angela Eddy
“Sometimes there’s excess fat and sometimes it’s just loose skin,” she adds.
Radiofrequency was the method 47-year-old Upper East Sider Angela Eddie chose to improve her hands. A former investment banker who now works for an orthopedic surgeon, Eddie visited plastic surgeon Norman Rowe, who charges $9,000 for a series of six treatments designed to eliminate fat cells.
The radio frequency machine “was a little uncomfortable, but not painful—like a hot rubber band going against my skin,” she says. “I’m a big skeptic, but this really worked. My arms look slimmer and the skin is tighter.”
Dana Cancel, a 44-year-old stay-at-home mom living in Harrison, New York, paid $4,000 to have liposuction on her arms.
“It got rid of my sagging and tightened the skin,” says Cancel, who was treated by dermatologist Howard Sobel. “I was very uncomfortable wearing spaghetti straps before, but not now.”
Even some women under 30 are going high-tech in their fight against inflammation.
Gina Graziano, who works in sales, turned to the Futura Fit muscle-stimulating machine in dermatologist Marina Peredo’s office, which charges $1,500 for a series of six treatments meant to tone muscle and melt away fat.
“My arms have always been a little out of proportion with the rest of me, and I’ve really had trouble emphasizing them,” says the 29-year-old Fort Greene resident. “I also had some loose skin. That really made the difference.”
Of course, some choose to tone their arms the old-fashioned way.
One gym that offers more targeted options for tackling the arm is Crunch, whose Top It Off classes focus on the upper body.
“If you’re looking for definition,” says Brookelyn Suddell, group fitness coach at the club, “I’d recommend using heavier weights with lateral raises to sculpt the shoulders, overhead presses for the biceps, and dips for the triceps. For a leaner look, “do pilates or barre classes and add light hand weights to your cardio,” she says.
