Aesthetic Injections

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That depends entirely on the plan, and it is one of the first things worth saying out loud at your assessment. Most people who come in asking this are worried about looking different rather than looking rested, and the way to avoid that is to treat the cause of what is bothering you rather than the appearance of it. If what you want is subtle, say so plainly, because it changes dose, product choice and how we stage the treatment.

It varies by what is used, where it is placed, and how you metabolise it, which is why anyone quoting you a single number is guessing. Tox in expressive areas generally needs repeating a few times a year, while fillers sit in the tissue for considerably longer and are gradually broken down. Your own timeline becomes much easier to predict after your first treatment, once we see how you respond.

Most people describe injections as brief and uncomfortable rather than painful, and there are things we can do about it — topical numbing, ice, and product that contains its own local anaesthetic. If you have found injections difficult in the past, tell us before we start rather than partway through, because there is more we can offer at the beginning than in the middle.

Bruising and swelling are common and expected. Less commonly there is asymmetry, or a result that needs adjusting at your follow-up. The serious risk with fillers is vascular occlusion, where product interrupts blood supply, and it is rare but it is the reason your injector’s knowledge of facial anatomy matters more than anything else about them. We go through all of this with you before you consent, not after.

Sometimes, and sometimes not. It depends on your health history, what you are taking, whether you have had recent dental work or vaccination, and what we find on assessment. Booking the assessment first is not us being cautious for the sake of it — it is what makes same-day treatment possible when it is appropriate and safe.

Filler adds volume where it is placed, and you see the result the day it is done. Sculptra does not do that. It is a biostimulator, which means it prompts your own body to produce collagen over the months following treatment, so what you eventually see is your tissue rather than the product. That difference changes everything about how it is planned, how it is paid for and how patience gets built into the process.

This is the question worth answering before treatment rather than after, because it catches people out. Sculptra is mixed with fluid before it is injected, so you leave with visible fullness that is largely that fluid. It settles over the following days and the area looks much as it did before. Nothing has gone wrong and nothing has been wasted; the collagen response has simply not happened yet. If you are not expecting that, the first week feels like a failure.It is planned as a series rather than a single appointment. Most people need between two and four sessions, spaced forty-five days apart, and the number depends on how much collagen loss is being addressed rather than on a package. Change builds gradually across that series and for some months after it, so the honest answer to when you will see something is that you will notice it in photographs before you notice it in the mirror. Anyone offering you a single-session Sculptra result is describing filler, not biostimulation.This is the question worth answering before treatment rather than after, because it catches people out. Sculptra is mixed with fluid before it is injected, so you leave with visible fullness that is largely that fluid. It settles over the following days and the area looks much as it did before. Nothing has gone wrong and nothing has been wasted; the collagen response has simply not happened yet. If you are not expecting that, the first week feels like a failure.

It is planned as a series rather than a single appointment. Most people need between two and four sessions, spaced forty-five days apart, and the number depends on how much collagen loss is being addressed rather than on a package. Change builds gradually across that series and for some months after it, so the honest answer to when you will see something is that you will notice it in photographs before you notice it in the mirror. Anyone offering you a single-session Sculptra result is describing filler, not biostimulation.

Longer than most hyaluronic acid fillers, because what persists is collagen your body made rather than a product sitting in the tissue. It is not permanent, and it fades gradually rather than stopping, so maintenance is usually a periodic top-up rather than starting again.

The usual injection risks apply — bruising, swelling, tenderness. The one specific to biostimulators is the formation of small nodules or papules under the skin, which is uncommon but is the reason technique, dilution, placement depth and aftercare matter as much as they do. We go through this with you before you consent, and it is part of why Sculptra is not offered off a menu.

Massage the treated areas for five minutes, five times a day, for five days. It is usually called the five-five-five rule, and it is the part patients most often let slide because it feels fussy on day three. It is not optional. Distributing the product evenly through the tissue is part of how the nodule risk is kept low, so the aftercare is doing real clinical work rather than being a formality.

No. Biostimulators are not used in the lips, and the reason is nodule risk in a highly mobile, thin-tissued area where a nodule would be both palpable and visible. If lips are what you want addressed, that is a hyaluronic acid conversation.