Fill-in for Your Skin

Appear Younger: “Fill-ins” for Your Skin


Injections and Chemicals to Erase Lines
Fast and fabulous, the exciting ways to pump up the look of sagging skin and wrinkles is through the remarkable world of injections. Botox®, collagen, and fat transfer injections are viable ways for people to minimize wrinkles and otherwise improve the appearance of their skin with rapid-acting, non-surgical procedures. Sometimes called ‘injectables,’ most ways to fill in lines and firm the appearance of skin involve injections. Like many non-surgical procedures (and even some surgical ones), these have temporary results.

Botox was, in 2005, the top non-surgical procedure for those 35-to-50, according to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS). Botox is popular as the formerly taboo toxin now used for non-toxic relief in fine lines. But Botox is not appropriate for filling in all lines: it is used where muscles contract. While you may have seen it used for wrinkles in the forehead or frown lines, you may not realize that it’s because this chemical is injected specifically where muscles contract, including crow’s feet and neck bands. So, if you choose this, don’t be surprised when your doctor requests that you frown or squint; it’s necessary for the doctor to determine where the small needle will be most helpful. It is an investment, though: despite temporary benefits, Botox injections cost (in 2005) an average of $382.00 per site, ranging from roughly $360.00 to over $500.00 depending on the U.S. region in which one seeks treatment. (On the bright side after paying such fees, you can go straight back to work; there’s generally no recovery period needed.)

Collagen injections, on the other hand, are used more traditionally to pump up the appearance of curves and ‘substance’ – such as in the lips. Such options are what professionals call “soft-tissue fillers.” It’s possible to use collagen to refill creases and wrinkles, but the specialty of such a product is to inflate (albeit temporarily) sunken areas in cheeks or lips. A ‘streamlining’ feature of the collagen injection process is that lidocaine, an anesthetic, is mixed with it for injections; so, for most patients, a separate anesthetic is unnecessary (if one is necessary, it is often a topical cream). This usually results in a few months’ change (doctors can discuss projected impact based on individual lifestyles). Also, it does require allergy testing: some have difficulties absorbing it as a ‘foreign matter,’ so the ‘patch test’ is well worth investing one’s time and effort.

One method of improving skin texture in this manner, however, boosts collagen in a different way: laser surgery targets the body’s ability to increase collagen in a given area, so the ‘collagen supplement’ is from within. Thus, collagen can boost the skin texture literally through external or internal therapy!

Like collagen injections, fat transfers (medically called autologous fat transplantation or microlipoinjection) are popular for filling in laugh lines, filling out sunken cheeks, minimizing forehead wrinkles, and more. This involves taking fat cells from one’s abdomen, thighs, buttocks, or other areas to inject under facial skin. With this process, the irritants may be fewer, but there is a greater need for anesthetic – and possibly sedation.

“Filling in the skin” may stimulate it and cause redness and swelling. The first few days, this is pretty much a given for collagen and fat injections: “overfilling” is the standard procedure because one’s body will absorb some of the injected material. Overall, the ill effects may last for a few days or weeks. In addition, there may be bruising, but this should diminish after a few days.