Cosmetic facial injectables are no longer a secret. As these effective anti-aging treatments lift, smooth, and restore youthful radiance, more patients are choosing injectables as their first line of defense in fighting the appearance of aging skin.
At Chicago Aesthetic Surgery Institute (CASI) in Rosemont, IL, we love the ease and versatility that facial injectables offer our clients. However, with so many options for treating fine lines, wrinkles, and volume loss, we understand that deciding which injectables are right for you can be overwhelming.
Patients visiting our offices from Chicago, Hoffman Estates, and the surrounding areas receive a full consultation to find a customized treatment plan. However, this guide also breaks down the differences in facial injectable treatments to help you understand which choices will deliver the best results for your skin.
What Types of Injectables Are There?
Facial injectables fall into three main types: neuromodulators, dermal fillers, and Kybella.
Neuromodulators
Neuromodulators use a diluted form of botulinum toxin. When we administer this substance to the designated area beneath the skin’s surface, it binds to receptors on your muscles. The binding action signals your body to stop releasing the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, which activates muscles.
Because acetylcholine is blocked, the muscles stop moving. Wrinkles formed by repeated muscle contractions begin to smooth. Botox, Dysport, Xeomin, and Jeuveau are all neuromodulators that use botulinum toxin to stop muscle contractions and reduce dynamic lines and wrinkles that form through facial expressions.
Dermal Fillers
Injectable wrinkle fillers provide support and volume in areas of the face where the skin’s structure has weakened over time. They smooth deeper lines and wrinkles, restore shape to facial contours, and plump areas like the lips, which can thin with age.
Most dermal fillers, like those in the Restylane and Juvéderm lines, use hyaluronic acid as their main ingredient. Your body naturally produces hyaluronic acid, which helps your skin to stretch, flex, and hold moisture.
In addition to hyaluronic acid–based injectable wrinkle fillers, patients can also restore structure and volume through biostimulatory fillers like Sculptra and Renuva. These fillers boost the production of plumping agents, such as collagen and fat cells, for youthful-looking skin.
Kybella
Kybella is a unique facial injectable. Instead of smoothing lines and wrinkles, Kybella contains deoxycholic acid and works to dissolve small pockets of fat. It is FDA-approved to reduce fat underneath the chin.
How Do I Know Which Injectable I Need?
Determining the right injectables for your skin depends on which skin concerns you aim to resolve. Patients hoping to restore a more youthful appearance can narrow their choices to neuromodulators, hyaluronic acid–based dermal fillers, and biostimulatory fillers. Each of these options treats aging concerns differently.
When to Choose Neuromodulators
Since neuromodulators work by halting facial contractions, they are best at treating dynamic wrinkles. Dynamic wrinkles appear when you express emotions, such as surprise, concern, or joy. For instance, furrowing your brow in concentration creates dynamic wrinkles on your forehead over time.
Collagen and elastin give your skin the flexibility to relax after facial expressions. However, the body produces fewer of these proteins over time. As collagen declines, wrinkles stay on your face regardless of your expression.
Many younger patients use injectable neuromodulators to prevent wrinkles from developing by ceasing the movements that create them.
When to Choose Hyaluronic Acid Dermal Fillers
Injectable wrinkle fillers like Juvéderm and Restylane have both immediate and long-term effects. They target static wrinkles with their active ingredient, hyaluronic acid.
The gel-like substance in these fillers quickly provides more lift and volume to the treatment areas. Additionally, the synthetic hyaluronic acid mimics the humectant the body naturally creates.
Your body uses hyaluronic acid to lubricate your joints and hydrate your skin and eyes. The hyaluronic acid found in dermal fillers has the same benefits, as it holds 1,000 times its weight in water, bringing more moisture to the skin’s surface and giving it an overall glow.
Patients who are seeking a solution for static wrinkles, creases, and loss of volume often find the results they’re hoping for with hyaluronic acid dermal fillers.
When to Choose Biostimulatory Injectables
While biostimulatory injectables are also considered fillers, they work differently from traditional hyaluronic acid fillers. These injectables also restore volume, but their main focus is stimulating the body to create structure from the inside out. We offer two biostimulatory injectables: Sculptra and Renuva.
Sculptra is a collagen-stimulating injectable designed to produce a healing response from the body. Sculptra injections cause a controlled inflammatory response in the treatment areas, which leads the body to respond by building collagen and providing a longer-term volumizing and smoothing effect on the skin.
Renuva uses fat to restore volume loss in the face, hands, and body. Upon injection, it creates an “adipose matrix” that serves as a honeycomb-like structure where your body fat forms. This process is called remodeling, and it gradually allows the product to be replaced with your own fat cells, restoring your skin’s natural depth and plumpness.
Biostimulants are thicker, so they’re not designed to restore volume to thinner skin, such as the lips or under the eyes. However, they are ideal for providing long-term structure and renewing aging skin.
Explore Your Options to Rejuvenate Your Skin with Injectables
The wide range of injectable treatments offered at Chicago Aesthetic Surgery Institute in Rosemont, IL, allows us to treat nearly all skin concerns. We consult with each patient to determine the customized course of treatment that will offer them the best results.
Learn what injectables can do for your skin when you schedule your appointment today.
