DR. HAIDEH HIRMAND | New York Lifestyles Magazine

DR. HAIDEH HIRMAND
The Scientific And Artful Aesthetic Plastic Surgeon

By Ruth J. Katz

Dr. Haideh Hirmand, a much sought-after, board-certified aesthetic plastic surgeon, is enthusiastic when invoking the name of Dr. Suzanne Noël, an early 20th-century French plastic surgeon. After being in practice for years, Dr. Hirmand discovered that Madame Noël, when compared with her male contemporaries, had been “obsessed with knowing who her patients were and what motivated them. In my practice,” she continued, “I, too, have always gone beyond the patient’s cosmetic concerns. I want to fully understand their motivation and individual circumstances to achieve age-appropriate elegance that is best suited to the individual. Whether I ‘sculpt’ with a scalpel or a needle, I want to attain the right look, for the right purpose, for the right time in someone’s life.”

Indeed, patients entering Dr. Hirmand’s stylish and cosseting Park Avenue office (which also houses a state-of-the-art, AAAASF-accredited operating facility) will engage with her for far more than the customary ten minutes. Dr. Hirmand takes time to know her patients and their aspirations. Harvard-educated, she is an invited lecturer at numerous esteemed, national and global conferences, and is highly credentialed, with prestigious international fellowships on her CV. In practice since 1999, she is on the faculty of New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill-Cornell Medical Center; in a male-dominated field, Dr. Hirmand has chaired the Women’s Aesthetic Surgeons Committee of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery and the Leadership Development Committee, among other, impressive leadership roles.

Always an innovator, Dr. Hirmand created, early on in her career, a blunt cannula, for filling in the under-eye trough, a delicate area. Today, countless other practitioners routinely use versions of that implement. She espouses a novel perspective when it comes to beauty in the age of social media. “I’m philosophically against using social media to commoditize and promote services with gory videos and before-and-after photos. My goal is to engage in a productive, intelligent conversation about beauty, offering useful insights as an aesthetic surgeon, scientist, and beauty expert.”

New York Lifestyles recently sat down with Dr. Hirmand to probe a little more deeply into her practice.

I know you strive to maintain an office that is not a cookie-cutter practice. How do you achieve that?
Our approach is unique in that it’s informed by the role appearance plays in our lives. Our consultation style sets us apart. Our team is superlative, from our front-desk staff to our nurse-practitioner to our aesthetic concierge. We even have a clinical researcher on staff. Most importantly, we keep a close tab on patient progress and outcome, to be sure we achieve our mutual goals while assuring that the patient experience is exceptional.

Could you elaborate on the facets of your practice that set you apart?
I’ve modeled my clinical approach around three concepts: First, looking like yourself. An intelligent aesthetic approach preserves the character of each individual’s unique features; it doesn’t alter them. I ask patients to bring pictures of themselves—from their 20s or 30s—which show me the original shape of the eyes and face, so I can preserve it and stay true to the original ‘blueprint.’

And the other foundation blocks of your practice that you mentioned?
Second, achieving age-appropriate and person-appropriate rejuvenation, considering a patient’s stage in life and who he/she is. Third, I look for aesthetic synergy to create an aesthetic plan that incorporates the right balance of cutting-edge, non-invasives with advanced surgical options to achieve optimal results.

Do you have a specialty area of practice?
My areas of concentration are the face and the eyes, both surgical and non-surgical: eyelid surgery, non-surgical tear-trough-filling, face and neck lifts, and the shorter-scar, rapid-recovery ‘jowl lift’ for younger necks. I also have a particular interest in bio-regenerative techniques, which grew out of my experience as a molecular biologist.

Tell us how your SkinLabRx—your med-spa—is different from others.
I am by training a molecular scientist and I knew about 20 years ago, when Botox received FDA approval, that we were entering an exciting frontier in technology in aesthetics. I committed to integrating the newest, cutting-edge technology into my practice and that led me to establish SkinLabRx. We offer everything from chemical peels, skin resurfacing, contouring, micro-needling, and rejuvenation. Our signature SkinRegeneRx program focuses on anti-inflammatory and bio-stimulatory treatments with little or no downtime. These techniques use the body’s own biological factors to supercharge healing and rejuvenation, and they harness the skin’s own power for cellular and molecular regeneration. These treatments not only remodel the skin to improve tone, texture, thickness, and pigmentation for a more youthful appearance, but they also slow down the pace and course of skin-aging.

Any “quick fixes” for the upcoming holiday social season?
Aside from the well-known injectables, I would recommend hydrafusion, which immediately brightens skin by exfoliating, peeling, hydrating, and infusing with anti-oxidant serums. It also includes micro-needling, which activates the skin’s healing response to promote collagen production, as it improves texture and tone—with no downtime.

For more information on Dr. Haideh Hirmand, visit haidehhirmandmd.com; for SkinLabRx, visit skinlabrx.com.