Injectable filler is a soft tissue filler injected into the skin at different depths to help fill in facial wrinkles, provide facial volume, and augment facial features: restoring a smoother appearance. Most of these wrinkle fillers are temporary because they are eventually absorbed by the body. Some people may need more than one injection to achieve the wrinkle-smoothing effect. The effect lasts for about six months or longer. Successful results depend on health of the skin, skill of the health care provider, and type of filler used. In the US, fillers are approved as medical devices by the Food and Drug Administration and the injection is prescribed and performed by a health care provider. Fillers are not approved for certain parts of the body where they can be unsafe, including the penis. In Europe and the UK, fillers are non-prescription medical devices that can be injected by anyone licensed to do so by the respective medical authorities. They require a CE mark, which regulates adherence to production standards, but does not require any demonstration of medical efficacy. As a result, there are over 140 injectable fillers in the UK/European market and only six approved for use in the US. In China, the market of cosmetic surgery increase in recent 10 years, NMPA also has issued several guidance to regulate injectable filler.
Medical uses
Dermal fillers, also known as "injectables" or "soft-tissue fillers," do just what their name suggests: they fill in the area under the skin.
Risks of an improperly performed dermal filler procedure commonly include bruising, redness, pain or itching. Less commonly, there may be infections or allergic reactions, which may cause scarring and lumps that may require surgical correction. More rarely, serious adverse effects such as blindness due to retrograde embolization into the ophthalmic and retinal arteries can occur. Delayed skin necrosis can also occur as a complication of embolization. Embolic complications are more frequently seen when autologous fat is used as a filler, followed by hyaluronic acid. Though rare, when vision loss does occur, it is usually permanent.
Materials used
Fillers are made of sugar molecules or composed ofhyaluronic acids, collagens — which may come from pigs, cows, cadavers, or may be generated in a laboratory — the person's own transplanted fat, and biosynthetic polymers. Examples of the latter include calcium hydroxylapatite, polycaprolactone, polymethylmethacrylate, and polylactic acid. In 2012, "Artiste Assisted Injection System" was launched in the US market to assist in the delivery of dermal fillers. A study concluded that the injecting device can achieve reductions in patient discomfort and adverse events by controlling the rate of flow of injection of the filler the practitioner is using to fill in the lips and frown lines.
