Are Fillers Right for You?
Injectable cosmetic treatments are the medical aesthetics success story of the 21st Century. In 2022, over 15 million Americans requested some form of injectable procedure to improve their appearance.
Are Fillers Really Safe?
To say that dermal fillers are a popular choice for people seeking to counter the effects of aging seriously understates the obvious. Nearly 3.5 million filler treatments were performed in 2020, second only to botulinum toxin type A injections (Botox®).
The reason? Dermal fillers are effective and safe. This safety depends on choosing brand name filler products that have Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for cosmetic uses.
Your choice of provider is also key to the safety of dermal filler treatments. You want medically trained professionals, like the team at Bayview General Medicine in Fort Lauderdale. Unlike many spas and practices that confine themselves to a single brand of fillers. Dr. Richard Blanchar and our team take advantage of the unique properties of several of the most popular filler brands. This means you’re assured a treatment plan that’s closely matched to your unique needs.
How dermal fillers work
Unlike botulinum toxin type A products including Botox and Dysport®, fillers work on passive lines and wrinkles, or places where your face needs additional volume. Botox-type injections work on muscle-based wrinkles and folds.
Dermal fillers use artificial versions of soft tissue already in your body. Formulated into gels with different properties, each filler product has its own best applications. Some are best for filling fine lines while others excel at boosting skin folds. Other fillers spread more from the injection site, making these ideal for places where you’ve lost volume, such as the cheeks or lips.
Popular filler brands
Bayview General Medicine selects from four reputable, FDA-approved fillers for their patients who choose to improve their appearance with dermal fillers. These brands are:
- Juvederm®: hyaluronic acid-based range of gels
- Radiesse®: calcium hydroxylapatite gel that fills and stimulates new collagen production
- Sculptra®: a gel based on poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA)
- Restylane®: another filler using a hyaluronic acid base
You can think of the range of filler products as the paints in an artist’s palette, selected to create the optimal effect.
Keeping your filler treatment safe
It’s possible to find off-brand fillers online. Sourcing fillers through the internet could lead you to a black market of unsafe, do-it-yourself products, or injection services offered by people who lack medical training. These services may be tempting if you’re shopping on price alone. However, you may end up receiving products that don’t have FDA approval, delivered by providers with no knowledge of anatomy.
Dermal fillers are also approved only for use on the face and hands. They’re not intended or safe for large-scale body contouring. Beware of fillers advertised as breast, butt, or muscle fillers. Treatments of these types could lead to serious medical issues or death.
Instead, contact Bayview General Medicine, experts in the effective and safe use of soft tissue dermal fillers. You can make an appointment by phone or online. Arrange your personal consultation today.
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