Fabulous Fillers
By Dr. Gwendolyn M. Yates, M.D. & Dr. Leslie Apgar, M.D.
Have you ever been surprised when you walked past a mirror and saw your mother? Or worse yet, your grandmother?
The passing of time can really sneak up on us, and make the mental images we have of our physical appearance diverge from reality. The great news is that there are lots of solutions to turn back the clock and restore our youthful appearance. What’s the right one? It’s different for every person and often involves a combination of approaches. That’s why we sit down for a medical consult with all of our patients.
Some of the most popular solutions are dermal fillers. Dermal fillers are substances that are injected just below the surface of the skin to fill in lines, wrinkles, and scars. Unlike face lifts that stretch the skin, fillers add volume for a more natural, youthful appearance. Fillers can also increase the fullness of the lips and lessen the downward slant of the corner of lips. The most common areas treated are the smile lines around the nose and mouth, fine lines above the mouth, frown lines between the eyes, and acne scars.
Several different cosmetic fillers are available in the marketplace. All are simple, nonsurgical, physician-administered treatments that are injected into the skin in small amounts using a fine needle at the site of interest.
Both Restylane® and Juvederm™ are injectable gels filled with non-animal hyaluronic acid and water. Hyaluronic acid is a naturally-occurring substance in the skin that helps to add volume and hydration. The main difference between Restylane® and Juvederm™ is that with Juvederm™, the hyaluronic acid undergoes a process called “cross-linking” which gives smoother gel consistency and longer lasting results.
Juvederm™ also comes in multiple formulas. We will determine which one is better for your unique situation depending on the deepness of the skin folds and/or wrinkles being treated.
Another popular filler is Radiesse® which is made of calcium-based microspheres suspended in a water-based gel. Radiesse® differs in that it continues to work over time by starting a process called collagenesis. This stimulates your own body to produce new collagen and encourages collagen to grow around the injection area. Immediate results are seen and improvement continues over about a week.
Although technically not a filler, Botox® injections are another popular treatment for these pro
blems. Botox® Cosmetic is a purified protein produced by the Clostridium botulinum bacterium, which reduces the activity of the muscles that cause lines to form over time. The treatments are also administered via injections at the site of interest and results last about four months. Botox® is best used on the furrows between the eyebrows, crow’s feet and forehead lines. There is no down-time for the treatments and they are pretty much pain free. Join us on Saturday, October 18 at 9:00 am for our Botox Brunch and find out for yourself!
We’re all very fortunate that medical science has so many options available for us! Give us a call and we’ll be happy to devise a treatment planned that suits your individual needs.
