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Dermal fillers

What are they?
Injections which fill out lines and wrinkles, sunken cheeks and weak chins; also used to reshape noses or lips.

Timings
Treatment takes 30-60 minutes and lasts 6-9 months.

Cost
£150-£750 depending on type of filler used and number of injections.

What are dermal fillers?
Skin starts to sag and wrinkle naturally with age, as underlying fat and collagen diminishes. Injecting dermal fillers into the skin plumps it up, makes it firmer and smoothes out lines and wrinkles. Dermal fillers, for example Restylane, may be based on hyaluronic acid, a naturally occurring substance widely used in medicine. Other types are made with collagen, produced from cows' skin. Newer types of filler with other ingredients claim to have a longer lasting effect, but aren't widely available.

What dermal fillers can do.
Frequently used to fill out the lips, dermal fillers are also highly successful in reducing crows' feet, wrinkles around the lips, nose and mouth, and lines on the cheeks and forehead. They can also plump out hollow cheeks, reshape the chin or nose tip, or fill acne scars.

What dermal fillers can't do.
Fillers can't alter the actual size of the nose.

What happens during treatment?
As with any cosmetic treatment, you should consult a qualified practitioner before deciding to go ahead.
Around 3% of people are allergic to bovine collagen, so a skin test is always given to patients being treated with collagen-based fillers.
Before treatment itself begins, the face is sometimes numbed with a local anaesthetic cream or injection. Fillers are applied under the skin with a series of injections – a mildly uncomfortable process, with injections close to the lip or nose the most likely to be painful.
Treatment takes up to one hour, and many people go straight back to normal daily life afterwards, although if a large area is treated it can take a few hours or even a day or two to recover. There may be slight bleeding where the needle was inserted, plus mild bruising or redness which will disappear in a few days. Repeat treatments are needed every six to nine months to maintain the appearance.

Results
The results are visible immediately, with the full effect showing once any swelling and bruising has subsided.

Risks
Avoid dermal fillers if you have active acne, or show even a slight reaction to the filler on skin test.
After treatment, allergic reactions sometimes crop up, including itching, puffiness, and red or bumpy skin. Patients who have had cold sores in the past can suffer an outbreak. Rarely, red lumps appear under the skin some months after treatment.

Where to get treatment
Dermal fillers can be given by doctors, nurses and dermatologists. Although fillers are non-prescription preparations, manufacturers recommend that they should be used only by medical professionals.

Cost
Sometimes a combination of different fillers is used, or dermal fillers are used alongside botox. There's a wide variation in cost, depending on the type of filler and depth of filling needed. Prices are based on the number of syringes of filler, and start at around £150, but could be as much as £750.

Alternatives to dermal fillers.
Facial exercises are a non-invasive alternative, which can improve muscle tone and circulation. Giving up smoking and drinking reduces the signs of ageing. Many creams and other skin preparations are available, which claim to reduce or delay the formation of lines and wrinkles. See also Improving lines and wrinkles without botox.

Dermal fillers help and info
Channel 4 Television takes no responsibility for the content of any third-party sites.

Links
Aging Skin Net
www.skincarephysicians.com/agingskinnet/update.html
American site with lots of information on what to expect from the wide range of dermal fillers currently on the market.

The Consulting Room
www.consultingroom.org
Good UK site that provides a wide range of impartial and independent cosmetic and medical information and demystifies the world of cosmetic treatments.

Dermal Fillers
www.emedicine.com/derm/topic515.htm
Lots of information on the wide range of available facial fillers, from this e-medicine site.

Restylane
www.restylane.com
Information about the product and details of suppliers.

Books
Restylane by Alan M. Engler and Sonia Weiss (Berkley Publishing, 2003)
Definitive guide to the anti-wrinkle treatment, answering questions like 'how does it work?', 'how long does it last?' and 'is it better than botox?'.
Get this book from Amazon

Eva Fraser's Facial Workout by Eva Fraser (Penguin, 1992)
As we grow older our facial muscles slacken through under use and the skin droops, forming pouches, bags under the eyes and wrinkles. The facial muscles need exercises in the same way the rest of the body does. Supporting this theory, the author offers a step-by-step programme towards a firmer, fitter face.
Get this book from Amazon

The New Facercise: Give yourself a natural facelift by Carole Maggio (Pan Macmillan, 2002)
Offers a programme of facial exercises and claims that, if done on a daily basis, they should make you look 10 Years Younger.
Get this book from Amazon

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