We talk alot about “fillers” which do exactly what you think they would do…they fill areas below the skin to replace lost volume.
Why do we lose volume if our weight stays the same?
Over time our collagen breaks down in the skin and between that and the ever so unforgiving ‘gravity,’ we are left with unwelcome sagging, lines and flattening of our features.
There are a few factors that move this process along more quickly but that’s another blog.
Most fillers are created from Hyaluronic acid which is found in your own body so they are safe and easily absorbed.
What is the difference between regular fillers and Radiesse?
Think of Radiesse as the construction crew that’s going in to build a scaffolding to support the structure known as ‘your aging face.’
This is a good thing!
Radiesse has calcium-based microspheres (similar to what is found in your bones and teeth) that work with your body encouraging tissue growth in and around the area where it is injected.
The water based ‘filler’gel that the microspheres are suspended in gives you an instant result and begins to dissolve in 2-3 months… that’s when your own collagen starts creating new volume.
The gel is generally gone is 3-4 months and the new collagen is now formed.
At about 9-12 months the microspheres begin to metabolize and you are still left with whatever result your own collagen has produced.
Brilliant right?!
Like Botox, Radiesse has been used for decades for medical, therapeutic purposes so it well established, safe and long lasting.
I doubt we will ever forget Goldie Hawn’s hysterically overly pumped lips in *First Wives Club* after supposedly having them injected with Collagen. We still hear clients refer to that look as the one they DON’T want.
The truth about bovine collagen is that it was the first widely used filler in the 80′s for enhancing volume and reducing the appearance of lines on the face. The first downside to it was that many people developed an allergic reaction as the body did not recognize it as human. The second problem was that the body broke it down faster making it last only 6 weeks to 3 months at the most.
When hyaluronic acids were approved, the fillers that used them (Juverderm, Restylane and Perlane for example) needed no allergy testing and rarely had any side effects because hyaluronic acid naturally occurs in our own bodies. They also provide excellent support to the tissue. Their staying power ranges from 6 months to18 months and most come with a built in numbing solution so the injection itself has very little discomfort.
So as you can see there are no advantages to using bovine collagen as the new filler technology has made it obsolete.
Dr Frame, our doctor at Anti Aging Medical & Laser Clinic has this to say about collagen vs hyaluronic acid:
Collagen is too lumpy and unnatural for fine facial filling. Hyaluronic acid has a stable more natural look and feel. The effect is a smooth long lasting filler that is comfortable to inject. With lidocaine in the hyaluronic acid vial, treatment is almost pain free. Delicate fine lines can be treated with a thinner hyaluronic acid whereas collagen often looked lumpy and swollen filler close to the epidermis with a fine molecule.
Dr Gidon Frame
Marlee Davis, AntiAging Medical & Laser Clinic Staff.
