Face

Botox Cosmetic FAQ’s

How is BOTOX COSMETIC done?

There is no preparation needed for a Botox Cosmetic treatment. During a free consultation you will discuss the areas that bother you with Dr. Studin. He will explain the possibilities. Once a plan has been agreed to, the injections take just a few minutes. While small areas of bruising are possible, they are rare. Avoiding aspirin, ibuprofen and Advil-like medicines for 24 hours before probably will reduce the possibility of bruising.

After the injections, it is advised not to lie down or exercise for a few hours.

How long does Botox Cosmetic last?

Botox Cosmetic will begin to work the next day but can take as long as two weeks to fully set in. From that time on, it is slowly dissipating. In my experience it lasts four to six months in most people. Remember, though, it is going away slowly so the effect lessens with time.

Most of my patients come back every four to six months to be re-treated. In some it seems to last as long as a year. The longer that you repeat it, the better the results seem to be as the offending muscles become less hyperactive.

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Laugh Lines – Smile Lines Lips – Chin Creases

Fillers – Prevelle® Restylane® Juvederm® Sculptra® Radiesse®

Weakening the muscle action of the forehead creases, crow’s feet and frown lines with BOTOX Cosmetic® is tremendously successful. This can not be done around the mouth or cheeks. If these muscles were weakened, the smile and the expressions of the face would be changed. Fortunately, are excellent solutions here.

Creases in the lower part of the face are best treated by filling them. Even a facelift can not flatten deep nasolabial grooves. The most popular choices for filling them are Fat and FILLERS. For large amounts, Fat can be harvested with a small suction procedure and reinjected. This fat, like fillers, will mostly dissolve over several months. For smaller amounts fillers are quicker, easier and require no donor site.

Collagen®

A Cow protein and no longer popular because more modern fillers are longer lasting and do not have the degree of allergy problems that Collagen® has.

Restylane® , Juvederm® and Prevelle Silk®

These are fillers made from Hyaluronic Acid, a substance that is naturally found in our bodies. In fact, it makes up the majority of the inside of the eye and our joint fluid as well as filling the spaces between all of our cells everywhere. These fillers are clear, long lasting and very forgiving. Because they are clear, they take on the color of the skin and are also great for Lip Enlargement. They are actually able to be molded between the fingers for a few minutes after injecting, avoiding a lot of the early lumpiness we used to see with Collagen. They last much longer than Collagen as well.

Radiesse®

Radiesse® is made of very tiny, smooth calcium hydroxylapatite (CaHA) microspheres. The microspheres (particles) form a scaffold through which your body’s own collagen grows, and this produces the desired long-term effect. In my experience it is the longest lasting correction for tough areas such as the nasolabial folds (grooves coming down from the sides of the nose), cheekbones and creases in the chin area. People tend to really like this product for the fact that they can space their treatments much farther apart. Why then doesn’t everyone use this? Because of its thicker consistency, it is a bit more traumatic to inject. Most patients will have some swelling and bruising of the area injected for anywhere from a day to 2 weeks. Usually this can be covered by makeup.

Sculptra®

Sculptra® is different than other fillers in that it is felt to recruit your own tissue buildup over months. A minimum of three treatments is usually recommended to fill areas where the skin has thinned and fat has been lost. Where the fillers above are good for deep creases like the folds on the sides of your nose and mouth, Sculptra is best for sunken cheeks, building cheekbones and larger area hollows.

Sculptra® is poly-L-lactic acid, a synthetic substance. It is not made from human or animal sources and does not have a significant degree of allergy associated with it so a skin test is not required. Poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA) is a biocompatible (does not harm the body), biodegradable (able to be broken down by the body) material that has been widely used for many years in surgical products. The effects were shown in a clinical study to last for up to 2 years after the first treatment. These treatments are usually done once a month for three months and then once a year thereafter.

While Sculptra® is long lasting, a small negative is that in some people small bumps can be felt under the skin. Most people, however, appreciate its ability to restore areas where skin thinning and fat loss are unsightly such as the backs of the hands.

General Filler FAQ’s

While sometimes patients feel that their fillers did not last, we have found that the cause of this is almost always due to under-treatment to start with. If a patient says that he or she would like 1cc and would like to treat their lips and nasolabial folds, they will unquestionably complain that the effect lasted for only a few weeks. In fact, the “effect” they saw was slight swelling from the injection, not adequate correction with fillers.

I find that to treat the lips adequately usually requires 1-1.5cc and each deep nasolabial fold requires 1cc. If treated properly, the results can be dramatic and last several months. Subsequent treatments require less because some of the initial treatment usually remains.

Topical anesthetic creams can be used but require hours to work so they need to be put on long before your injection. Many patients will come in and wait a while for these creams to work. Others will start using the creams before they come in.
This procedure can be done on a lunch break and requires no anesthesia or recovery.