Understanding Anti-Wrinkle Injections and Dermal Fillers
What are anti-wrinkle injections?
Anti-wrinkle or anti-ageing injections (or sometimes just called ‘Botox’) are primarily used for treating dynamic wrinkles. They usually contain botulinum toxin, which relaxes the facial muscles that cause wrinkles due to repetitive movements. This cosmetic procedure can also be used to treat excessive sweating (or hyperhidrosis).
What are dermal fillers?
Dermal fillers usually contain hyaluronic acid, which is a naturally occurring substance in the body. They’re often just referred to as ‘fillers’ and are used to add volume and reshape facial features, effectively treating static wrinkles caused by lost volume.
How Treatments Work
Relaxing Facial Muscles with Anti-wrinkle Injections
Anti-ageing injections relax your facial muscles to reduce dynamic wrinkles that can appear due to your frequent facial expressions and repetitive muscle movements.
If you have frown lines, crow’s feet or smokers’ lines you may be able to achieve a more youthful appearance with anti-wrinkle injections.
Results can last between three and six months and take as little as 15 minutes to administer.
Filling in Lost Volume with Dermal Fillers
On the other hand, dermal fillers work by restoring volume in areas such as the lips, nasolabial folds and tear troughs, enhancing your facial aesthetics for around 12 months and even up to two years.
Dermal filler is also effective on the hands, neck and decolletage where they encourage collagen production and help to firm your skin over time.
Since the primary effect of dermal fillers is an increased volume in the skin, they are often used to achieve younger-looking skin and can be used as an anti-wrinkle treatment depending on the type of filler used.
What to Expect from Treatment
Most clients find the results from anti-wrinkle injections and dermal fillers to be incredibly effective. Both injectable treatments are quick, and there is minimal downtime.
Some dermal filler treatments can have long-term effects by stimulating collagen and elastin production. That’s why some of our patients maintain their firm skin for up to two years following treatment.
With anti-wrinkle injections, the full effect will not be seen until 2-3 weeks after treatment. Patients can experience some discomfort during the procedure and any redness or bruising which may occur often subsides very quickly.
Choosing the Right Treatment for You
Many of our patients prefer combining dermal fillers and anti-wrinkle injections for a holistic approach to skin rejuvenation. Fillers and anti-wrinkle injections can complement each other nicely if you have a few treatment areas you’d like to address.
If, however, you’re looking to choose between the two treatments, you should first take note of the type of wrinkles you want to treat.
If you have dynamic wrinkles (those which appear with facial movements), then anti-wrinkle injections will be the treatment for you. Static wrinkles (lines that are always apparent) are best treated with dermal fillers.
Of course, if you are still unsure, it’s best to book a consultation with a skin expert to discuss your options. Our qualified dermal practitioners at Refresh Medispa can provide a thorough skin assessment and personalised treatment plans.
