At Plastic Surgery Specialists of South Florida in Hollywood, FL, we are proud to offer our clients a wide variety of methods for reversing the signs of aging. We understand not everyone is ready to commit to a cosmetic procedure, so we offer many dermal fillers to erase wrinkles, bags and other signs of aging. Today, we’re answering the most frequently asked questions about Belotero, an innovative dermal filler that can help you look years younger.
Yes. Belotero stimulates collagen growth. When the medicine is injected into areas lacking adequate collagen growth, fibroblasts are stretched. Fibroblasts are the cells that release collagen proteins. When the fibroblasts are stretched by the injections, they produce more collagen.
However, an increase in collagen production isn’t the only collagen-related benefit offered by this innovative injectable. When the fibroblasts are stretched, they don’t just increase collagen production. They also secrete chemicals that protect the existing collagen. This makes your skin more resilient to environmental factors, like sunlight and second-hand smoke, that would normally be very effective at weakening your existing collagen.
Furthermore, this is a great treatment for moderate-to-severe forehead wrinkles caused by volume loss. If you also have forehead wrinkles caused by hyperactive muscles, we offer several treatment options for that, too. Furthermore, you can use this injectable to augment your lips, correct asymmetrical lips, contour your jawline and enhance the contours of your cheeks. Finally, you can use this treatment to correct lines around your mouth, eyes and nose.
How long this treatment takes depends on how many areas you’re trying to treat, the size of the areas you’re treating and how many doses you need to be administered into each area. If you’re only targeting the dark circles under your eyes, your treatment session may only take a quarter of an hour. Your treatment session may take closer to an hour if you are targeting your lower eyelids, cheeks, forehead, nose and mouth.
You can expect to see the initial results of your treatment immediately. After all, once the hyaluronic acid has been injected into your skin, you will have more volume in the treatment area. However, it will be two to three weeks to see the final results of the treatment. You may want to come in for a follow-up appointment a couple of weeks after your first round of injections so we can assess whether a slight touch-up will be necessary.
Most people find they only need one treatment session to see their desired results. However, depending on the severity of your collagen loss, you may find that you need a small touch-up to perfect your appearance. You’ll know within two or three weeks whether a follow-up appointment is necessary.
Since this anti-aging injectable stimulates your body’s collagen production, the results of treatment will last several months. How long the results of treatment last exactly depends on how healthy your skin is but you can expect the results of your treatment to last around six to 12 months. This is comparable to other hyaluronic acid-based dermal fillers.
Healthy skin does a pretty good job producing collagen. In contrast, unhealthy skin will produce less collagen than it should. This becomes more important the older you get because your skin’s collagen production rate reduces annually starting at the age of 25.
The most important thing to do to protect and improve the health of your skin is to wear sunscreen every day and reapply it every four hours. UVC rays emitted by the sun are the leading cause of weak collagen and a drastically reduced rate of collagen production. Tobacco consumption is another significant driver of premature skin aging. If you use any tobacco products, including dip, cigarettes or cigars, stop. Nicotine weakens collagen.
For the longest-lasting results, you should also minimize your consumption of alcohol. Healthy skin requires plenty of nutrients and water to keep its collagen healthy and produce new collagen. Alcohol ages your skin prematurely, in part, because it dehydrates you rapidly and flushes lots of crucial micronutrients out of your body. Finally, eat plenty of lean protein for the longest-lasting results.
We will be able to tell you whether you’re a good candidate for this anti-aging treatment once you come in for an initial evaluation. As a good general rule of thumb, if you are a fairly healthy adult who wants to stimulate collagen growth in your face, you will probably be considered a good candidate for this treatment.
However, you should hold off on considering this treatment if you are pregnant or breastfeeding. The safety for pregnant or nursing women has not been tested. Furthermore, you may not be a good candidate for this treatment if you have heart conditions that you have to take NSAIDs daily for. You will also be considered a poor candidate if you have a history of blood clots.
Yes. This treatment is perfectly safe. Hyaluronic acid-based dermal fillers have been FDA-approved since 2002 and this particular filler was approved by the FDA in 2011. However, as with any anti-aging treatment, it is not appropriate for everyone. We will discuss your allergies and other medical conditions to ensure it is safe for you.
No. Belotero injections are not painful at all. Included in each dose of medication is a bit of lidocaine, an injectable anesthetic. This medication will numb the treatment area and keep it numb for half of an hour after your session is over. However, since it is not as powerful as general anesthesia, it is safe to drive after you receive lidocaine injections.
When your treatment starts, we will remove any cosmetics you may be wearing on the treatment areas. To save you some time, we recommend that you come in without any makeup or lotion on your face. Once all of the cosmetics are removed, we will cleanse the treatment areas with an alcohol-based sterilizer.
Once your treatment areas are sterilized, we will inject the medication into strategic locations using a very fine-gauge needle attached to a syringe. Once your injections are complete, we will gently massage the treated area to help the medication spread quickly where it needs to go. Once the medication is massaged in, we will discuss post-treatment care steps with you so you know how to get the best results from your treatment.
If we find during your initial evaluation that you’re a good candidate for this treatment, we will provide you with comprehensive instructions regarding how to prepare for this treatment. However, we can highlight the most important preparation steps now. The most important things to do in preparation for this treatment are to stop smoking and drinking alcohol in the two weeks preceding your treatment to ensure your blood pressure is normal.
You should also avoid consuming too much sodium or caffeine in the 48 hours leading up to your treatment to ensure you have normal blood pressure. Furthermore, you must avoid taking NSAIDs or any other drugs or nutritional supplements that contraindicate this injectable. Talk to your doctor before you stop taking any medications or supplements. If you can’t stop taking blood thinners safely, you may not be able to receive this treatment.
The recovery process following your injections is minimal. Since this is a non-invasive treatment, you can return straight to work after your injections. There is no risk of falling asleep while driving because lidocaine doesn’t affect people like general anesthesia does. You are also free to engage in moderate exercise after your treatment session but there are a few things you should avoid after treatment.
After your treatment session, avoid strenuous exercise. Just like it is important that your blood pressure is stable before your treatment session, it is also important that your blood pressure remains normal after your treatment session. You should also avoid strenuous exercise because strenuous exercise makes you sweat and makes your face hot and you should do your best to keep your face from being too hot.
We strongly recommend that you take a lukewarm shower after your treatment instead of a hot, steamy shower. You should also avoid eating anything steaming for dinner after your treatment, such as soup or hot pasta.
Besides avoiding anything that can elevate your blood pressure or make your face too hot, you should also avoid anything that will thin your blood, like vitamin E supplements, MAOIs and NSAIDs. Furthermore, do not take anticoagulants, anti-platelet medications or thrombolytic medications during the first 72 hours following your treatment session. We will provide you with a comprehensive list of drugs to avoid during your initial consultation.
After treatment, make sure you wear a sunscreen that protects you from all three types of UV rays emitted by the sun. The easiest way to tell if a sunscreen you are looking at protects against UVC rays is to see if “broad-spectrum” appears on the bottle. If it doesn’t, the sunscreen you found doesn’t provide enough protection.
Furthermore, it is advisable to not wear makeup within 24 hours of treatment. If you choose to wear makeup, make sure you remove it gently. Too much pressure applied to your face is bad. Finally, sleep on your back to avoid putting too much pressure on your face in your sleep.
Belotero stimulates collagen growth by stretching the cells that secrete collagen. Different formulas can be used to stimulate collagen growth in different areas but it most commonly used to volumize the cheeks, jaws, forehead, nose and mouth and erase bags. To learn more about this treatment, we strongly encourage you to reach out to us today at Plastic Surgery Specialists of South Florida in Hollywood, FL to book an appointment. See you soon!
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