COLLAGEN
Picture an old, deflated beach ball, lines and wrinkles covering its crumpled surface. Now picture if fully inflated. The lines and wrinkles have disappeared, replaced by a firm, smooth surface. This basic concept is how collagen injections “fill out” wrinkles in your face. This is true for all fillers!
As collagen – a natural substance we all have in our bodies – is injected under the surface of your skin, many facial wrinkles and small indentations like “laugh lines” and “crows feet” disappear. Although only a small amount is used and only a slight expansion of your skin occurs, the end result can be quite dramatic.
Collagen is the oldest filler on the market, and the human synthetic form, cosmoderm remains an excellent filler for fine superficial lines, as a finishing layer over other fillers, or alone especially around the lips.
RESTYLANE
Restylane® is a safe and natural cosmetic dermal filler that restores volume and fullness to the skin to correct moderate to severe facial wrinkles and folds, such as nasolabial folds.
Restylane® was the first cosmetic dermal filler made of non-animal-based hyaluronic acid. Hyaluronic acid is a natural substance that already exists in the human body and is used to provide volume and fullness to the skin. They hyaluronic acid in Restylaneâ is a crystal-clear gel called NASHA, or Non-Animal Stabilized Hyaluronic Acid. NASHA is a biodegradable and fully biocompatible with human hyaluronic acid.
Restylane® is proven to deliver long-lasting results. Studies have show that Restylane® effects generally last for about six months. In practice, my experience is longer, and with repeated treatments, the effect can last from 8 - 12 months. It's heavier cousin Perlane, has recently been approved and is a great deep filler for volume restoration, particularly for deeper lines and in the chin area. Effects from Perlane last at least a year.
RADIESSE
RADIESSE is a more recent FDA-approved dermal filler that restores a natural, youthful look with longer lasting effect. This convenient treatment fills and corrects smile lines, nasolabial folds and wrinkles around the nose and mouth. RADIESSE is made of unique calcium-based microspheres suspended in a natural gel that is injected into the skin through a simple, safe and minimally invasive procedure.
RADEISSE works with your body, below the skin's surface. Tiny calcium-based microspheres form a 'scaffold' to support and stimulate the growth of your own collagen. Over time, the calcium-based microspheres gradually break down and are safely and naturally absorbed by your body. RADEISSE does more than just temporarily fill-in facial folds and wrinkles - it rebuilds your skin's foundation and restores your youthful look, without the risks associated with a permanent implant.
The results are immediate. RADEISSE typically lasts a year or more. It is best injected with the use of a local anesthetic. It is a very good filler and has been lasting as long as advertised. In my experience the risk of bruising is a little bit higher than with the shorter acting fillers but still not very common.
JUVEDERM
JUVEDERM injectable gel is a smooth gel filler your doctor eases under your skin to instantly smooth out those wrinkles or folds that look like parenthes ( ) along the side of your nose and mouth. Results aren't just instant, they're so smooth and natural, everyone will notice but no one will know. Juvederm was the second hyaluronic acid filler approved in the US. It is somewhat softer that Restylane.
JUVEDERM injectable gel is produced through HYLACROSS technology creating a high degree of cross-linking and promoting duration for up to one year. It comes in two forms, Ultra and Ultra Plus
HYLACROSS technology results in a smooth consistency gel, which is a primary factor in the long-lasting, smooth, natural look and feel that is a hallmark of JUVEDERM wrinkle correction. I have been very happy with Juvederm. It has a soft natural feel, and is excellent in lips as well as the nasolabial folds.
EVERYONE WILL NOTICE, but no one will know.......
ARTEFILL
DISCOVER THE FIRST AND ONLY FDA-APPROVED NON-RESORBABLE INJECTABLE WRINKLE FILLER......ENDURING BEAUTY
ARTEFILL is the first and only FDA-approved non-resorbable wrinkle filler for the correction of smile lines. It is a semi permanent filler which contains PMMA microspheres and purified bovine collagen gel with an anesthetic for comfort during injecton. ArteFill is a dual-acting injectable wrinkle filler that provides immediate long lasting results.
First, ArteFill visibly corrects the wrinkle with the collagen component. The microspheres then provide the permanent support your skin needs for endurung wrinkle correction similar to the calcium spheres in Radiesse, but the PMMA microspheres last longer. In fact the FDA is now reviewing data showing the effect can last up to five years.
Before your initial treatment with ArteFill, a skin test must be administered 4 weeks prior to screen for an allergy to bovine collagen. Artefill is a great addition to our filler armementarium, especially for our patients with prior experience with fillers.
