“Aging gracefully? No, I just want to look good,” says the owner of a medical spa, skYn by Dr. Moore.
Tina Leu photographs Jacqueline Moore of skYn by Dr. Moore
Medical spas, or the prestige “medspas,” have been impacting the cosmetic industry lately at an increasing rate. The spas offer a wide range of aesthetic procedures, including botox, injections, filler, and laser treatments, to name a few practices, including surgical procedures. And while the industry has seen an increase in clients, medspas are still failing a considerable percentage of clientele: melanated skin.
Sometimes, medspas will offer treatments and products that use ingredients that can be harmful to deeper skin tones. However, a trailblazer in the medical industry is offering services to warmer skin tones, Dr. Jacqueline Moore, with the education, experience, and desire to serve her community.
Dr. Moore is a board-certified surgeon who opened a medical spa in Aldie, Virginia. I had the opportunity to talk with Dr. Moore about her spa treatments, the variations of her procedures, and her backstory and impact on the medical and wellness community.
Q&A:
First, tell me a little bit about your medspa. And why did you choose to open one?
My med spa is a high-end Med Spa. We’re located in Loudoun County, a pretty fast-growing and diverse county in Virginia.
skYn by Dr. Moore photographed by Tina Leu Fotos in Virginia
As I’ve been getting older, I’ve been wanting to pursue treatment. That idea of “aging gracefully,” ‘I’m like, no, I just, I want to look good, as long as I can.’ So, we started looking into those treatments; there weren’t any available for skin of color. I found that when I would call or visit a medspa, that vibe was like they were very comfortable with only certain things, usually not people with melanated skin. They had excellent tools and treatments, but not necessarily for my skin type.
Can you talk about the differences in bruising in different skin tones?
Hyperpigmentation occurs in all skin tones. So when we refer to skin tones, we refer to “Fitzpatrick,” which is basically how the skin reacts to the sun. So, it’s not necessarily a particular skin color. The darker Fitzpatrick you know, many Mediterranean, Asian, Indian, African American, we have more melanin in our skin. And so inflammation of any sort, whether heat or trauma can cause a type of pigmentation called post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation. We work on that by addressing its root cause, whether that be acne scarring or the result of some sort of trauma, scrubs, or harsh exfoliation. We always evaluate the skincare regimen and what you are doing at home that can exacerbate this, and then we look at how to treat it.
Then there’s a type of hyperpigmentation that’s not related necessarily to inflammation and trauma and is more of a genetic type called melasma. And you can see it in hormonal changes. The challenge with Melasma is that it can be superficial or very deep, and very deep melasma, no matter who your provider is, is just very, very hard to treat. And in those situations, sometimes we can’t get rid of it, but we can make it better.
Some of your services mentioned include injectables, botox, and types of filler. What is the difference between Sculptra and filler?
Fillers these days are typically made with hyaluronic acid. And that is a natural protein that you have in your body in any case. What these fillers do is create volume to some degree, and they’re different consistencies; you can have a very viscous filler, which is great for filling the temples and cheeks. If you’re trying to lift the cheeks or really snatch out the jawline, you can do great things with a thicker, more viscous filler. If you’re looking for something more natural or subtle those are HA (hyaluronic) fillers.
Sculptra is like a bioregulator/modulator. And it has it the way that it’s designed: injecting it into the areas of concern and then stimulating the body to create its own scaffolding. It creates its own collagen and elastin and also restores that natural tissue that you have that decreases over time. It is an excellent filler for restoring your natural tissues.
skYn by Dr. Moore photographed by Tina Leu Fotos in Virginia
What would you say is the best treatment or filler for someone who doesn’t want to go into cosmetic surgery entirely?
It depends on the goals. If you’re just looking to look refreshed, especially people with tired under-eyes, I’m a big fan of PRP or PRF fillers right now. That’s where we take your plasma, we take your blood and mix it to create sort of a gel, and then we can inject it into the areas. It doesn’t really add a lot of volume, but it really improves the texture of the skin. It rejuvenates crepey skin or tired-looking skin and makes it look healthier.
If you’re trying to add volume, balance the face, and restructure the face, the “Juvederm” line is something we use a lot.
Do you think the pandemic had anything to do with this huge surge of demand in the medspa industry?
I think it has much to do with the zoom effect, right? So during COVID, when people were staying home and having to do their conferences and their meetings with their cameras pointed at them, you know, a lot more time to look at yourself. Also, I think the recovery benefits. Some of our procedures are amazing; they take a day or two or more to recover from. So when people are at home have more time to recover because they don’t have to worry about going into the office. I think it’s a combination of more time available and less time spent in the office.
skYn by Dr. Moore photographed by Tina Leu Fotos in Virginia
Can you talk about your men’s treatments? What is the significant difference between women’s and men’s skin?
Men have thicker skin, so they do really well with skin-tightening treatments. Because thick skin, that collagen, that elastin, really responds to that contraction, we’re sending heat into the skin because of that contraction, so beautiful results of skin tightening treatments. Men also tend to have fewer lines and wrinkles because their skin is thicker.
However, many men will have issues because of ingrown hair, especially men of color, right? They have pseudofolliculitis barbae (PFB), where they get ingrown hairs on their beards and necks. We have treatments that we can do that laser hair removal so that you don’t have to worry about that anymore, making life a lot easier.
What’s your favorite service that your spa offers?
I would choose the Halo, which is a dual laser treatment. It has two different wavelengths: one that targets the superficial skin and one that goes deeper. So it’s like a two-for-one treatment. You can rejuvenate and resurface the skin to get that beautiful, glowing skin immediately. But then you can also target the deeper layers, which tighten and firm the skin, encouraging new tissue growth. Over time, it leads to a youthful look. I love, love that!
skYn by Dr. Moore photographed by Tina Leu Fotos in Virginia
What advice do you have for melanated people who want to get involved in the medspa industry?
The first thing to do is research. Think of your problem areas and what you want to work on. Then when you go to meet your provider, you are already armed with some information. It doesn’t necessarily mean that your provider has nothing to offer, but you get an idea of their comfort level with skin color. There are a lot of providers out there; they don’t necessarily have to be of color to understand skin of color, but you want to feel comfortable that they do understand skin of color. Then, you want to ask them about things like hyperpigmentation. How do they treat hyperpigmentation? What is your skin type, and how would they treat it?
Most importantly, complications are always a possibility for any provider. It’s a slight possibility, but it’s still a possibility of any treatment or procedure you do. So you want to be sure that any provider that you could care for your skin in any complications.
skYn by Dr. Moore photographed by Tina Leu Fotos in Virginia
