Injectable Fillers in a Busy Cosmetic Facial Surgery Office

 January is always an interesting time of the year as we review and reflect on our procedure numbers from the previous 12 months.  I was both amazed and intrigued to have injected 1,761 syringes of filler in the past 12 months.  I knew I was in the top 10% of injectors nationally, but did not ever really count the volume in the past as we mostly tracked surgical procedures.  What is also notable is that I personally do all filler and neurotoxin injections in my office.  Some practices have multiple physician injectors or non-surgical staff such as nurses and nurse practitioners that may inject.  In our office it is just me, so 1,761 syringes of filler means I was really busy.

In further reflecting about the popularity of injectable fillers, so much has changed in 15 years.  For those of us that were using fillers in the 1990’s, the choices were pretty slim.  Basically we had Zyderm and Zyplast which was collagen from cow tissue.  One big draw back was that some patients could have severe allergic problems and when mad cow disease surfaced, it upped the scare factor for animal collagen.  Allergy was rare, but allergy testing was a hassle because the patient had to come in a month before injection to have a test dose to determine allergic response.   Hard to imagine now in this day of “walk in/get injected” treatment.  The other and biggest problem of collagen filler was that it simply did not last.  It did OK for fine lines and wrinkles but sometimes only lasted a matter of weeks.  It was also pretty “creamy” in texture and did not do much for lifting or plumping.

Fast forward 10 years and NASHA fillers were introduced.  This stands for Non Animal Stabilized Hyaluronic Acid.  Hyaluronic acid is a naturally occurring carbohydrate that is found in many body tissues.  It has the consistency of hair gel and can be produced in thin and thick formulations.  The thinner (more watery) formulation (Restylane, Juvederm Ultra, Belotero) are used more for fine lines and wrinkles or outlining lips.  The thicker formulations (Perlane, Juvederm Ultra Plus, Voluma) are well suited for more robust applications like lifting or volume restorations, such as filling cheeks and smile lines.  If you desire more trivia, this viscosity or adhesivity is referred to as “G Prime”.

These hyaluronic acid fillers have been game changers because there are no allergy problems, and the results last for up to a year.  Another huge advantage of the hyaluronic acid fillers is the fact that they can be reversed overnight.  Although most patients want their filler to hang around, there are times where they may not like the result.  Injecting hyaluronidase (an enzyme that dissolves the filler) can reverse the result in a matter of hours.  That can be a great insurance policy.  Although we have semi-permanent and permanent fillers, they cannot be reversed and permanent filler can turn into a permanent complication.  I personally inject Radiesse and fat which are semi-permanent filler and silicone oil which is permanent filler.  Where and how we use these types of fillers is different from every day filler applications.  95% of patients are best suited for hyaluronic acid fillers.

Finally, the other reflection about fillers is how our usage has changed over the past 15 years.  I can promise you that no one ever walked into my office in the mid 1990’s and asked for cheek, teartrough, or brow filler.  In one respect, we did not think about it and in the other respect, it would not have worked well with the available products at that time.  Today, we use fillers in the upper face for forehead lines, eyebrow lift, and crow’s feet wrinkles.  We use them in the midface for teartrough, cheek, smile line and nose treatment, we use them in the lower face for lip, chin, jowl, mandibular angle and jawline augmentation.  The versatility of modern fillers has been both exponential and amazing and is truly an enjoyable part of my practice.  I routinely publish on filler use and technique and teach courses major filler companies to train other doctors.  I love performing surgery, but I also enjoy the artistry and sculpting that involves injectable fillers.  This is one of the reasons my job is so much fun.