Choosing Your Ideal Dermal Filler

Dermal fillers are the second most popular nonsurgical cosmetic treatment in the United States, just after Botox®. They’re a quick cosmetic injection that gives you immediate results.

Though many people use dermal fillers to restore a more youthful look, our highly skilled board-certified cosmetic dermatologists at Associated Skin Care Specialists use different types of fillers to address different cosmetic needs.

Customizing treatment ensures you get the results you want. How do you know what dermal filler is ideal for you? Let us help you choose.

Dermal fillers 101 

Dermal fillers, also known as soft tissue fillers, are cosmetic injectables that enhance your facial features by adding volume under your skin. Because volume loss is one of the main contributors to the visible signs of aging, many people choose dermal fillers to restore a more youthful look. 

But dermal fillers do more than smooth out lines and wrinkles. We use dermal fillers to:

• Enhance facial features 
• Create facial symmetry
• Plump up thin lips 
• Smooth out depressed acne scars

No one dermal filler works for all beauty needs. When it comes to choosing your ideal dermal filler, you need to know which one works best for your beauty concern.

The different dermal fillers

We use two brands of dermal fillers to address a wide range of beauty needs: the Juvéderm® line of fillers and Bellafill®.

Juvéderm

The Juvéderm line of fillers contains hyaluronic acid gel. Hyaluronic acid is a substance naturally found in your body that helps retain moisture. The Juvéderm line includes various types of fillers that address specific beauty needs.

The following is a list of the fillers and their uses:

• Juvéderm XC: smooths out facial lines; plumps up lips
• Juvéderm Vollure™: treats moderate to severe facial lines and wrinkles
• Juvéderm Voluma™: enhances cheeks; improves facial symmetry (chin augmentation)
• Juvéderm Volbella™: plumps up lips; corrects perioral lines, those lines that spread out from around your mouth 

Juvéderm fillers are temporary, and your body absorbs the hyaluronic acid over time. However, many of the dermal fillers we use last a year or more. 

Bellafill 

Bellafill is a semi-permanent dermal filler. It contains polymethyl-methacrylate microspheres (PMMA), a biocompatible substance doctors have been using for over a century. With Bellafill, the PMMA forms into a microsphere under your skin that remains in place for up to five years. This dermal filler also stimulates the production of collagen.

We use Bellafill to smooth out lines and wrinkles, especially the nasolabial folds, the lines that run from the bottom of your nose to the corners of your lips. Because Bellafill lasts for so long, we also like to use this dermal filler for correcting depressed acne scars.

Things to consider

When it comes to choosing your ideal dermal filler, you don’t have to do it all on your own. Even though we use specific fillers to fix various beauty concerns, your needs are unique to you. What works for one person may not work for another.

When you come in for a dermal filler consultation, our cosmetic dermatologists spend time talking to you about your beauty goals and closely examine your skin. They review your dermal filler options, including type, how they work, number of injections, and how long they last. 

Then, together we decide your ideal dermal filler, which may include more than one. You may even consider adding other cosmetic treatments, such as Botox to soften your crow’s feet.

If you’re worried about using dermal fillers when you’ve received a COVID vaccine, the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery (ASDS) states that current data shouldn’t dissuade people with fillers from getting vaccines. Nor should vaccinated people feel the need to avoid dermal fillers in the future. 

Are you ready to choose your dermal filler? We can help. Schedule an appointment at one of our dermatology clinics. We have offices in Blaine, Eden Prairie, Maple Grove, and Coon Rapids, Minnesota. Make an appointment using our convenient online scheduling tool by following the above links or by calling our office today. We also have offices in Fridley and Brighton, Minnesota, to address your dermatology needs.