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Dermal fillers can play several roles when it comes to fighting the signs of aging on your face. They can fill in lines or wrinkles, add volume to your cheeks or lips, and fill in shallow areas. The injectable dermal fillers on offer at Quintessa Medical Spa are all made from substances that naturally occur in your body. As you age, your body produces less of some of these substances, which contributes to the signs of aging.
If you are ready to take action against volume loss and wrinkles but aren’t quite ready for a facelift or other surgical procedure, a dermal filler can be the right option for you. The key is choosing the right filler for your needs.
Dermal Filler Ingredients
The fillers at Quintessa are either made from hyaluronic acid or calcium hydroxylapatite. Hyaluronic acid is naturally found in the human body, often in the connective tissue, skin tissue, and the fluid around the eyes. Along with having cosmetic uses, the substance can be used to treat people with arthritis, as it adds cushioning to the joint areas and reduces pain.
When used as a cosmetic treatment, hyaluronic acid acts like a cushion, giving support to the underlying structure of the skin, increasing volume, and elasticity. It also makes skin smoother and softer, as it pulls in water.
Calcium hydroxylapatite is also naturally made by the human body but in a different area. It’s commonly found in your bones and is considerably heavier than hyaluronic acid. When injected into the skin, the substance acts like a scaffold. Collagen then builds upon the scaffold, increasing fullness in the cheeks and other areas of the face.
Although both calcium hydroxylapatite and hyaluronic acid are made by the body, the substances used in injectable fillers are made synthetically. The hyaluronic acid found in fillers such as Juvederm and Perlane is made from bacterial proteins. The calcium hydroxylapatite in Radiesse is completely biocompatible and not made from human or animal products.
Locations Used
Fillers that contain hyaluronic acid aren’t necessarily the same. For example, Perlane contains larger molecules and is designed to be injected deeper into the skin. It’s typically used to ease chin wrinkles and the wrinkles around the mouth. Restylane has smaller particles and is often injected into the laugh lines, corners of the mouth, and above the mouth. It can also be used to add volume to the lips. Juvederm is a smooth gel and is also commonly used to treat the laugh lines, lines around the mouth, and lines above the mouth, as well as the lips. Voluma is a smooth gel as well, but it is firmer and thicker and is used to treat the loss of volume in the cheeks and under the eyes.
Radiesse, the injectable filler made from calcium hydroxylapatite, is used to treat the laugh lines, and cheeks. Patients can also receive it to treat signs of aging on the pre-jowl area, the area on either side of the chin that begins to sag and lose volume as people get older. It is contraindicated in the lips and under the eyes.
Results Timeline for Dermal Fillers
The results from dermal fillers aren’t permanent. Even fillers made of the same substance provide different results. The results from Juvederm can last for up to a year, for example, while the results from Restylane typically last for just six to nine months. Results from Radiesse or Perlane can also last for up to a year. Voluma has been shown to consistently last for at least 2 years. Some factors can lead to the results lasting longer or shorter than expected. For example, if the treated area is one that sees a lot of movement, such as the sides of the mouth, results can last for less time compared to a treated area that’s relatively still like the cheeks or under the eyes.
Picking the Right Filler Treatment
The downtime involved after any type of dermal filler is usually minimal. Treatment usually takes less than half an hour and in most cases, you’ll be able to go back to your regular activities right away. If side effects occur from any type of filler, they are usually mild and include swelling, bruising, and redness, which should fade after a few days.
Deciding which filler is a good fit for you depends on what you expect from the treatment. If you are looking to try out a filler, you might choose one with a shorter duration, such as Restylane. Some people try out hyaluronic acid fillers, then switch to Radiesse if they find that they aren’t happy with results, but often the Radiesse doesn’t last much longer than the hyaluronic acid fillers. A longer-lasting option is fat grafting, but that would be considered a minor surgical procedure, and as such would involve some downtime.
