Dermal Fillers

Before you commit to investing in dermal filler treatments, you need to ask and get the answers to some key questions. We provide some basic information here, but these are questions you should ask your dermal filler professional. As both a consumer and a patient become well informed.

Ask these questions to your doctor:

1. Could you explain what a dermal filler is?

Dermal fillers are gel-like substances. Dermal fillers are injected beneath the skin to restore lost volume, smooth lines, and soften creases, or enhance facial contours.

2. Are dermal fillers the same as Botox?

Botox and other brand-name option such as Jeuveau, Xeomin, and Dysport are not dermal fillers. Botox and the alternatives are neuromodulators. These neuromodulators are used for wrinkles that naturally occur, with age, in regions associated with your eyes, mouth, and in between your eyebrows. These wrinkles become more pronounced with age. Botox can relax the muscles in these regions. A muscle, when injected with Botox will no longer tighten and contract. Therefore, the wrinkles will relax and soften and become less prominent.

In contrast, dermal fillers add volume to the depressions around the corners of the mouth, lips, temples, chin, and cheekbones. Dermal fillers enhance facial features. Once injected, a filler will replenish your natural hyaluronic acid. Hyaluronic acid diminishes as you age. Fillers will give your skin a plump, smooth, hydrated look, and work in tandem with Botox to display a rejuvenate the face.

3. What are some specific dermal filler products and which ones do you recommend and why?

Popular fillers include:

• Radiesse
• Juvederm
• Restylane
• Perlane
• Evolence

Companies use different ingredients when designing and making dermal fillers. There may be good and specific reasons to use one type of dermal filler for a particular situation.

4. Could you explain the treatment process?

The dermal filler process will follow the following steps:

Step 1 – Pre-Treatment Consultation and Facial Assessment

A review of your medical history will be done with your doctor. Knowing about skin conditions, allergies, and medications will help to guide key decisions. For example, if you are using aspirin and blood thinners, there can be an increased bruising risk.

Your doctor will then evaluate your face to examine the specific areas to be injected.

Step 2 – Anesthetizing

Your doctor or a nurse will clean the injection sites with an antibacterial solution.

Some doctors may decide to numb the injection sites. Your doctor may choose to use an anesthetic ointment or local anesthesia.  Most dermal filler products do contain the anesthetic lidocaine. This anesthetic will help minimize any discomfort.

Step 3 – Injection

Injection of fillers will take a few seconds per injection site. Your doctor will inject a precise amount of filler beneath the skin, massage it, evaluate the results, and decide whether additional filler is needed.

You can expect mild discomfort. Depending on the number of areas to be treated, the entire process can last between 10-20 minutes. You will be able to go back to your regular activities immediately after the dermal filler process.

5. How long will dermal fillers last?

The results are immediate, but it can take up to 2 weeks for the results to appear as some fillers cause a bit of temporary swelling.  Depending on the type of filler used and the area, results can last between six to 18 months.

How long a filler lasts is also dependent on:

• The type of filler
• The amount of product used
• The location of the injection
• Your metabolism

Fillers also tend to last longer in areas with less movement. For example, injected cheeks will likely last longer than enhanced lips as you use your lips much more than you use your lips.

6. Are there any side effects?

You can experience severe side effects if an injection is into an artery, but this is very rare. Minor side effects will go away within a few hours to days.

Some minor side effects include:

• Redness
• Numbness
• Minor bruising
• An allergic reaction
• Itching
• Scarring
• Soreness

You can use an ice pack to help relieve swelling and numbness.

7. Are there any long-term problems?

Hyaluronic acid (HA) is a “water-loving” molecule found naturally within the body. Dermal products containing HA provide safe and natural-looking results.

The National Center for Biotechnology Information published a report. The report noted that hyaluronic acid fillers last longer and require less product to achieve the same cosmetic effect when compared to collagen.  HA fillers are gaining preference among providers and patients for this reason.

8. Are there specific areas of your face where dermal fillers work best?

The most popular areas for dermal fillers are:

• Lips
• Cheeks
• Chin
• Temples
• Hands
• Under eyes
• Nasolabial folds
• Earlobes

Ask some questions to learn about your provider.

9. Can you tell me about yourself.

Learn about your doctor. Form a relationship. When selecting a doctor for your injectable treatment, give your decision-making process the same level of review you would for a surgical procedure.

10. Can you show me before-and-after pictures.

An “artist”-practitioner will be proud to show the work they have performed. There is an added benefit to looking at before and after images. The conversation can help both of you better decide how to proceed.

Ask some questions about post-care.

11. How are dermal fillers affected by a massage?

Fillers work by pushing up the skin and adding volume to areas of deficit. If you massage the place where the dermal filler has been applied, the filler will flatten out and reduce its effectiveness.

12. If I am not pleased with the result, can you remove the filler after it has been administered?

Yes, dermal fillers can be dissolved, reversing the initial treatment.

13. How often will I need to repeat the treatment?

It would be best if you planned on committing to a schedule to have fillers re-administered every six to 12 months. Note that you may not always need treatment in the same areas.

You can expect fillers to last between nine and 18 months, depending on the area of the face being treated.

14. How long does it take to recover from treatment?

The advantage of fillers and non-surgical treatments is the minimal downtime after treatment. Very short recovery times are needed, perhaps 24 hours due to some minor swelling.

These questions and the answers should help you to learn more about how demal fillers work and whether they may be the right choice for you.

You can visit the website of Vermont Facial Aesthetics to learn more about dermal fillers.