| Dr. William Phillip Werschler is a fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology. Here the Doctor has answered some of the common questions bizymoms visitors have about Cosmetic Dermatology.
Q. How does the Collagen treatment work?
A. In the past, bovine derived collagen was used as a facial plumper to areas of wrinkling on the face and to the lips for augmentation. Currently, there are three collagen based fillers out on the market that are primarily used. Cosmoderm and Cosmoplast are human based collagens that do not require prior skin testing to rule out an allergic reaction but last in the treated area only three to four months. The other is Artefill, a unique bovine based collagen that has an added product to it to stimulate the body to make its own collagen to dramatically increase the longevity for two to five years of correction.
Collagen isn’t used very frequently now as so many other cosmetic dermal fillers have come onto the aesthetic market since Restalyne, a hyaluronic acid, was approved by the FDA in 2003. Hyaluronic acid fillers have become very popular with cosmetic patients as it is a complex sugar that is also manufactured by the body and requires no prior allergy testing. Hyaluronic acids give a long lasting and soft natural looking correction to the treated area for approximately six to nine months generally. Restylane, Perlane, Juvederm Ultra, and Juvederm Ultra Plus are all examples of hyaluronic acid fillers that can be used actually almost anywhere on the face and body for augmentation and plumping. These fillers can be used for wrinkle and scar filling, lip plumping, around the eyes to reduce the appearance of the tear trough below the eye; and to the cheeks for augmentation…in truth they are safe to use most places on the face and body by an experienced and skilled practitioner.
Radiesse, which is calcium hydroxylapatite, is also a natural product made by the body. Radiesse provides a longer lasting correction than the hyaluronic acids, approximately nine months to one and a half years, and provides a firmer augmentation to the treated areas. It also has the advantage of making your body grow its own collagen at the areas of injection. Radiesse is used in the smile lines for wrinkle reduction, in the cheeks for augmentation, in the temples for hollowing, and even in the hands for plumping and de-aging.
Sculptra Aesthetic is liquid poly-l-lactic acid and it is also natural product used to make your own body stimulate collagen production to the injected areas. Sculptra Aesthetic is a unique product as well as it is done in a series of treatments approximately one month apart which results in the patient growing their own collagen, while replacing the collagen lost from normal aging for a natural rejuvenation and revolumization of the face. Sculpta Aesthetic typically lasts for two to three years after the series of treatment sessions are completed.
I would also like to mention Botox Cosmetic and Dysport here. These are similar protein based products that when used correctly, can relax specific muscles to give the face a much more youthful and relaxed appearance. They are both important pieces in the overall rejuvenation of the aging face. These treatments typically last for three to four months after injection.
Q. How long do the filler treatments procedure take?
A. Not long at all, usually about thirty minutes.
Q. What are the side effects of using the filler treatments?
A. The side effects seen with these cosmetic injections are minimal if the patient sees an experienced and skilled practitioner. I would like to stress this point because I have had the sad and unfortunate experience of seeing patients that have seen a provider that did not have much experience or history injecting these products and have seen patients that have had complications, some of them not correctable. With a skilled provider though, the usual side effects might be some possible swelling and/or bruising that could last for a few days to maybe a week.
Q. How effective is the filler treatments?
A. All of the above mentioned treatments are very effective and the average cosmetic patient is very happy with their cosmetic procedures.
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