Dermal fillers have come a long way since their inception. The practice, which involves reducing wrinkles and lines in the skin by injections that are scheduled prescription-only medications, is not one that should be conducted by ‘just anyone’.
Since first offering cosmetic medicine the dermal filler procedure has gone through many incarnations. Gone are the days of using collagen derived from cows, or foam and silicone implants and simply injecting materials along the line of the wrinkle.
We use many different fillers at epiclinic® to suit our patients’ needs and for different facial areas. These fillers are long-lasting, soft and natural looking.
There are several manufacturers of prescription-only dermal filler materials, most of which come from the USA, Sweden and Switzerland – unfortunately, none are made in Australia, however, all are made in high-quality laboratories and approved for use in Australia.
There are many things to consider when looking at treating facial wrinkles. We have put together the following frequently asked questions to help you in your decision process.
When considering treatment, the first thing our team will look at is whether your wrinkles are static or dynamic. Dynamic wrinkles are those that are only there when you smile or form an expression while static wrinkles are present at all times. Static lines are generally treated with dermal fillers while dynamic lines are treated with anti-wrinkle injections.
Tear trough grooves create a hollow at the junction between the lower eyelid and the cheek. In many cases, tear troughs are genetic rather than a result of ageing, and often arise in the early to mid-twenties.
The transition from the eyes to the cheeks becomes interrupted by the presence of eye bags and tear troughs, and this can be ageing or be associated with looking tired. Dermal fillers can help to smooth the transition between the lower eyelid and the cheeks and make the appearance of tear troughs or eye bags less obvious.
You may have seen articles on the treatment of ‘tear troughs’ with dermal fillers. Advice? Don’t let beginners inject dermal fillers below the eye area. Even in the most experienced hands, successful treatment here is no gimme.
The key to success is ‘less is more’. Almost on a weekly basis, epiclinic® sees patients who have had bad outcomes from inexperienced injectors. Sure, in many cases we can dissolve products that have ‘over-filled’ this area, narrowing the eyes when the patient smiles, but dissolving product is painful and carries its own risks of anaphylaxis, no matter how small that risk is.
You need a special product, careful attention and experienced dexterity. And it will not take five minutes. Listen carefully to your doctor about risks and complications and be prepared to reduce, not eliminate these shadowy areas below the eye area. Because, if the area is filled too much, at rest it may look fine after treatment, but when you smile, which hopefully is most of the time, the dermal filler will move up, closing the lower eyelid and producing horizontal lines under the eyes.
Prior to injections with dermal fillers the area is examined using ultrasound imaging to identify where blood vessels lie or other structures that might interfere with the procedure.
In order to further evaluate the best treatment for you, we will also consider:
At epiclinic® we always consider if an alternate treatment (even one not offered at epiclinic®) may be better for you.
At epiclinic® highly advanced processes and materials are used to improve the volume and appearance of areas such as the:
Dermal fillers can also be used for:
While the process for dermal fillers used to be straight forward; a series of injections along the line or wrinkle, the process is now much more advanced. We will consider the cause of wrinkles and facial lines and evaluate the reasons why treatment may not be suitable.
To further evaluate your suitability for treatment as well as ensure we’re prescribing the correct treatment we will perform a 3D imaging scan. We do this before and after your procedure to show you the differences in facial volume.
Looking at the above scan take note of the ‘warmer’ colours (red, orange, yellow) on the upper cheek area and the contour of the cheek on the other side (the OG curve.) This is where the patient has had volume replacement on the mid-face, where it had been lost as part of the ageing process. Now look at the ‘cooler’ coloured areas (blue), these show where the face has lifted. Note that the jowls and the oral commissures have all lifted as a result of re-inflating the middle of the face!
After lifting the mid-face, we don’t need to inject around the mouth, in fact, that would only add weight to the lower face and drag it down into the jowls!
Of course, sometimes we do need to inject directly into the lines, but this should only be done after getting the volume back to normal in the mid-face (and not ‘over-done’).
Price should not be your defining factor as the quality of your practitioner is the most important. Not only does our doctor, but Dr Michael Molton has over 20 years of experience our clinical team is also very experienced and our prices are competitive.
For detailed dermal fillers pricing please do not hesitate to contact our friendly team on 08 8227 2242 to book your initial consultation.
Consider a car tyre, when you get a flat tyre you see the evidence at the bottom of the tyre but you know that it’s due to a lack of pressure in the whole tyre. If you re-inflate the tyre the problem is solved and you don’t have the sag at the bottom.
The same applies to your face. When you lose volume in the mid-face, around the eyes and cheeks for example, the effects show further down on your face. Lines and wrinkles form from the nose to the corners of the mouth (nasolabial lines), down-turning lines appear at the corner of the mouth (oral commissures) and jowls develop.
Look closely at the curve of the cheek from a side or three-quarter view (the OG-curve), if you can see the nasolabial lines, oral commissures and jowls I bet you will also see that the OG curve has flattened out. If we re-inflate here, the lines and jowls diminish considerably. It’s like having a face-lift without horrible plastic surgery.
At epiclinic® we use a variety of dermal fillers. A consultation with the team at epiclinic® will provide you with more information on the cosmetic medical treatments that are best for you.
A doctor
New patient consultation fees to see Dr Molton are $85 and are payable when booking.