dermal fillers

Dermal fillers are substances that are injected in your face, they fill lines and wrinkles and add volume to areas such as lips and cheeks.

Why are dermal fillers used?

As you age, your body starts to lose collagen.

Collagen is an important substance that exists all over your body, including in your skin, muscles, bones and connective tissues.

Due to the decreasing amonts of collagen in your skin it causes skin laxity (loose) and loss of volume. your skin becomes thinner, loses its elasticity and starts to sag.

You may decide to choose dermal fillers to:

• Add volume to areas of sagging skin
• Make your facial features more symmetrical.
• add plumpness to cheeks and lips
• Smooth wrinkles and creases in your face, such as smile lines, marionette lines (down turned lips) forehead creases, creases/hollows underneath the eyes, crease lines above and below the lips.  reshape, the nose, chin, jaw line and cheeks to add volume 
• reshape, temporal hollows and the eyebrows to help create lift.

During a consultation, your clinician will discuss your needs medical history. Its it important to make them aware  of any medications or relevent medical history as this may increase the risks of getting the injections.

Tell the nurse if you have:

• Allergies
• History of bruising or bleeding after similar procedures
• Neurological problems
• Skin conditions

A consultation also enables the nurse to to determine and discuss the amount of dermal filler that maybe required.

You can begin with a small amount of filler and build on this, depending on the result you hope to achieve and your budget.

Are dermal fillers safe?

Hyaluronic acids have been used around the world since the mid-nineties. They are completely safe and are not known to cause allergic reactions.

Results from Hyaluronic acid injections (Dermal Filler) usually last 6-12 months

How do dermal fillers work?

The soft gel fillers plump and flatten age lines, creases and depressions (such as smile lines and the lines above and below the lips) Once in place, the skin isn’t able to fold in these areas as easily and therefore you receive significant protection from advance ageing and further collagen loss. Secondly, you are able to fill and enhance facial features, such as the lips, cheeks, chin and nose where volume is lacking.

What happens during my procedure?

Using a thin needle, small amounts of the filler will be injected into the desired treatment areas. Local anesthetic cream can be applied prior to treatment to make the area more comfortable to treat.The needle will pinch or sting, but most people don’t experience much pain during these injections. Your nurse may inject the fillers in several areas. The whole process can take a few minutes or up to an hour. Multiple treatments may be required to achieve the desired outcome.

What can I expect post procedure?

In most cases you can return to normal activities straight away. There is usually minimal to no discomfort once the anesthetic has worn off. Swelling and some redness may be apparent for a few hours. You may see needle-prick marks and bruising can also occur. In the case of lip enhancement/smoker’s lines you can expect reasonable swelling for up to 72 hours.

Bruising is also a high risk in this area.