Dermal fillers are organic material used to fill out the face. They replace the layer of collagen that, in younger people, keeps the lips plump, the skin firm, and the wrinkles light. By replacing this collagen, a filler can thus enhance an appearance in the following ways:
- Lessening wrinkles in areas that sink, like the eyes, lower forehead, and around the mouth
- Improving the contours of the face by plumping the nose, cheeks, and lips
- Returning volume to the face after weight loss or illness
- Smoothing the hands and hiding veins
Different materials and brands can help achieve these goals in different ways.
Types of Fillers
Fillers come in several types: collagen, collagen stimulator, hyaluronic acid, calcium hydroxylapatite, permanent, and fat.
Collagen
Collagen is the natural material that keeps skin firm. It is made out of long protein chains, like threads.
Since fillers replace collagen, it only makes sense that the first fillers should just use collagen itself. This worked passably well. Collagen fillers do reduce wrinkles and plump up the skin, but sometimes inexperienced injectors can make collagen work a little too well.
Collagen fillers can bunch up into raised chains, sometimes creating an “overstuffed” look. Now, they are mostly used for major enhancements like lip adjustments.
Collagen Stimulator
A newer and more exciting trend are collagen stimulators that use special chemicals to encourage your body to rebuild its natural collagen layer. The most common brand name is Sculptra. Sculptra slowly builds collagen up over 90 days, restoring youth to your skin. Instead of changing your appearance, it just makes you look as you did when you were younger.
Collagen stimulators are best used to restore small amounts of volume, especially in the cheeks and temples.
Hyaluronic Acid
Though it sounds like a lab chemical, hyaluronic acid is not. It’s a naturally occurring body fluid that fills in and cushions the joints. Unlike collagen, it brings moisture as well as volume, and works effectively on the thin skin under the eyes and nose. The most popular brand is Juvederm, but equally effective brands include Perlane, Prevelle, Puragen and Restylane.
Calcium Hydroxylapatite
Calcium hydroxylapatite is another natural fluid that fills in bone marrow. It is injected deeper into the skin, where it provides large amounts of volume without risk of migration.
Permanent
Permanent fillers use synthetic microspheres that are never absorbed by the body. They are only suitable for the lips and skin around the mouth, not thinner areas like the eyes and cheeks.
Fat
Fat works well as a filler, and can lead to permanent changes. It needs to be done carefully, with the fat being purified before the injection, for the best results.
