Facial Fillers and Rejuvenation

Information provided by the Aesthetic Science Institute- Boca Raton, Florida

Collagen® has been used for many years as the standard facial filler. However, its expense and brief life span (three to four months at most) have been very frustrating for patient and doctor alike. Our new facial fillers can last a year to several years, and many of them have no known allergic potential, unlike Collagen. Lips, cheeks, the folds around the mouth, and chin areas are all areas where fillers are used. The field of fillers is changing more rapidly than the others, thanks to our pharmaceutical industry, so I won’t comment on individual brands here. Fillers for the forehead creases are more risky because there are veins that communicate with the brain, and strokes have been reported (very, very rarely). But for the most part, the only risks are lumps and allergy (for some fillers). Most lumps made by fillers respond to massage, or in some cases need to be injected or cut out. Small areas of skin death have been reported, but this is exceedingly rare.