Injectables
Temporary Fillers
What are temporary fillers?
This is a product that is injected into facial wrinkles to blunt or camouflage the wrinkle and gives a more youthful appearance to the face. It can also be used to increase volume in certain areas of the face to give the appearance of a fuller more youthful face.
What are the types of fillers?
The original fillers were a form of collagen taken from cows (bovine collagen) or shark collagen. There was a significant allergic reaction risk with these products. Patients having collagen injections required a skin test and a waiting period for one week before undergoing treatment.
Today, collagen has been replaced by an injectable product called hyaluronic acid, which is a clear gel like substance. It comes in varying viscosities designed for different uses within the face (very fine wrinkles, deeper wrinkle, and volume filling).
There are a number of products available, each produced by different pharmaceutical companies. The more common product names are Resytlane and Juvéderm.
Allergic reaction to these products is rare and pre injection skin testing is not necessary.
How is the Filler injected and how long does it last?
Using a very fine needle, the desired crease being treated is injected, filling out the crease to blunt or eliminate it. Deeper creases require more filler.
Patients requesting a volume increase to certain areas of the face (like the cheeks or lips) will require more volume and a different viscosity of hyaluronic acid product to achieve this result.
The duration of the effect is very patient variable. Typically the effects are between 3- 6 months although some patients enjoy the effects for a year to 18 months.
risks:
Are there risks with temporary filler injections?
Hyaluronic acid filler injection is very operator dependant. An experienced medically trained practioner is advisable.
Dr. Giuffre has a highly trained Registered Nurse that treats patients with temporary filler and Botox in his surgical suite under supervision.
Please see www.pclsc.ca
Placing filler around or in the eyelid skin is inadvisable.
Rare allergic reactions are treated with an injection of a product called hyaluronidase, an enzyme, which eliminates the local filler.
These fillers are temporary and their effects are short lived.
Patients can trial the temporary product to see the cosmetic effect before proceeding to more permanent fillers (fat grafting). This has application to patients considering a permanent increase in facial volume around the temple, cheek bones, cheek and upper and lower lips.
Risks for temporary filler enhancement for facial creases:
Scarring (rare)
Infection (rare)
Pigmentation change which can be darker or lighter pigmentation to the area treated
Prolonged redness (erythema)
Early Recurrence of the wrinkling (under filling)
Overfilling leaving a contour deformity. This is more likely with very thin skin like the eyelid skin.
Prolonged irregular surface of the skin (seen with filling of the eyelids -this is not recommended)
Skin damage (necrosis)
Allergic reaction
Asymmetry
Expense
*There are many options for injectables. Both medical and non medical practitioners are using injectables. Please ensure that the correct material is being injected by trained medical personnel who are affiliated with a physician experienced in the use and risk of injectables.