Preventing the Overuse of Dermal Fillers
The use of dermal fillers has increased significantly in recent years. Fillers, sometimes referred to as a “liquid facelift”, can offer full facial rejuvenation with minimal pain and virtually no downtime. Dermal fillers provide the ability to enhance contours, balance the facial profile, rejuvenate the skin, and provide an overall natural and aesthetically pleasing result.
In the hands of inexperienced injectors, however, dermal fillers can be overused. The results can be off-putting, with overly enhanced facial features that can make the patient appear more aged and unnatural.
Effects of Natural Facial Aging
Youthful-looking faces typically feature plump cheeks and lips, firm skin, and a strong bone structure (specifically the jaw area). More of the shape of a triangle, which we refer to the triangle of youth. As one ages, facial structure is naturally altered in the following ways:
- The skin itself becomes weaker as natural collagen and elastin levels decline. The result is the formation of wrinkles, “jowls”, and sagging of the skin.
- Facial volume loss tends to occur as facial fat and other tissue becomes cannibalized. This loss in volume tends to give a hollowed appearance both in the cheeks and in the area under the eyes.
- Bone density loss decreases the mass of the cheek and jaw bones; giving the face a flat or sinking appearance.
The Birth of Dermal Fillers
Dermal fillers were created to address facial aging issues as the cosmetic industry lacked a solution for adding volume (shape) back to the face. Prior to the use of fillers, the primary cosmetic solutions focused solely on tightening facial skin, which often led to unnatural looking results. Dermal fillers enabled physicians to create a plump and youthful aesthetic that was more natural in appearance.
Now that we have dermal fillers, we are able to age more gracefully by using these non-surgical fillers to look more useful. If they are placed properly. Now you don’t have to wait until your face is falling off like icing on cake and just go straight to a facelift you can do small procedures to look more refreshed.
Today there are many great dermal fillers on the market including Juvederm, Voluma, Sculptra, and Belotero. Each of these products are highly effective for varying facial rejuvenation purposes. However, if any filler is overused, the end result is an unnatural “overdone” look.
Avoiding Overuse of Dermal Fillers
There are three ways to avoid overusing dermal fillers.
1. Find the right provider. Properly injecting fillers requires the combination of an artistic eye, a deep understanding of the anatomy of the face, and years of experience. Look for practitioners who have a history of using fillers, practice in a reputable facility/business, and have good reviews from their patients and peers alike. Beware of pricing that seems too good to be true (chances are it is).
In addition, there are new laws in Texas that require patients to be evaluated by a physician or licensed physician assistant prior to being treated by a non-licensed practitioner (such as a nurse or aesthetician) and require that treatments must be performed in a medical facility (not a salon or home).
2. Know when to stop. It’s not uncommon for patients to love the results of their filler so much to the point where they want more. Trust your provider if he/she advises against additional treatment. A good practitioner will know the limitations of your face and adamantly advise against additional filler when you begin approaching the limit.
3. Have realistic expectations. Many individuals who overuse filler do so because they have unrealistic expectations about the final results. Understand that dermal fillers enhance your current facial traits; they are not meant to create completely new facial characteristics. Educate yourself when it comes to fillers and listen to the expected end results that your physician outlines.
*Remember a little bit of filler in the correct placement is a home run and a little bit in the wrong place can be an unpleasing look. So, make sure you go to the correct provider. Remember this is your face. Let’s keep it aging gracefully together.
Kelly Wala is a Registered Nurse with a Baccalaureate Degree of Science in Nursing from Eastern Kentucky University. As an Aesthetic Nurse Specialist for the past 10 years Kelly specialized in a full complement of non-surgical aesthetic services such as facial injectables, laser and light therapy, body contouring, and skin care. Kelly was the first in Texas to perform the Injectable Threadlift. Kelly is a Faculty trainer for Allergan Facial Aesthetics and Coolsculpting as well as a Faculty trainer for Galderma Facial Aesthetics and Sculptra. Aesthetics
Dermal fillers can definitely improve your look overall if placed in the correct area of the face. Thanks for sharing these tips!
Great article! I have been looking for help choosing a reputable juvederm and botox provider and this definitely helped!
Thank you for this information. My face is aging so much and I want to look younger. I’ve been researching cosmetic dermatology procedures and I think that dermal fillers would be a good option for me. I appreciate your advice on how to avoid overusing. It was very helpful.
Wow! Dermal filler seems very successful treatment to enhance our facial look and rejuvenate the skin. I appreciate you for sharing this post.
Hello! I just would like to give a huge thumbs up for the great info you have here on this post. Very informative!