Radiesse™

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1. What does the Radiesse™ treatment involve?
2. When Am I a good Candidate for Radiesse™ treatment?
3. How do I plan for my Radiesse™ treatment?
4. How do I prepare for Radiesse™ treatment?
5. What results can I expect following Radiesse™ treatment?
6. Where will my Radiesse™ treatment be performed?
7. What type of anesthesia will be used for my Radiesse™ treatment?
8. What should I expect after Radiesse™ treatment?
9. When will I be able to return to work following Radiesse™ treatment?
10. Are there any side effects associated with Radiesse™ treatment?
11. Are there any risks associated with Radiesse™ treatment?
12. Was Radiesse developed specifically for filling of facial lines?

What does the Radiesse™ treatment involve?

Radiesse™ is a bone imitation (30 % microspheres and 70% carboxymethylcellulose gel) made synthetically from ocean coral, which is packaged into 1.3 and 0.4 ml syringes. Physicians can inject the material into the deep skin layer in order to allow for filling of wrinkles, which have developed with sun exposure and aging. Areas that can be safely injected include nasolabial fold (laugh lines), marionette lines (lateral chin depressions), cheeks, and acne scars/depressions. Volumes of injection for Radiesse™ have been compiled for your convenience:

Am I a good Candidate for Radiesse™ treatment?

Radiesse™ is currently being used to fill facial wrinkles that have developed secondary to sun exposure and aging. A distinction should be made between dynamic wrinkles, which are present only with animation, and static wrinkles that are present all the time. Whereas Botox® may be used for dynamic wrinkles, a filler material must be used to eliminate static wrinkles. Since Radiesse™ is the most viscous of all fillers, it is most useful for deeper folds of the nasolabial fold or deeper depressions along the marionette and jaw lines.

How do I plan for my Radiesse™ treatment?

Since Radiesse™ injections can result in slight bruising and swelling it is wise to schedule your treatment 1 week prior to any social events. In addition, it is wise to avoid any blood thinners such as aspirin or herbal products for two weeks prior to treatment.

How do I prepare for Radiesse™ treatment?

Since Radiesse™ treatment requires only superficial injections (deep dermis), no preparation is required by clients. Although most clients could tolerate the treatment during their lunch hour, it is advised that patients receive their treatment at the end of the day so that they do not have to return to work immediately. Following their Radiesse™ treatments patients are advised to ice areas treated for approximately 10 minutes and avoid any strenuous activity for 1 day.

What results can I expect following Radiesse™ treatment?

Clients can expect a softening of folds/wrinkles/depressions caused by sun exposure and aging for up to 12 to 16 months. Most commonly treated areas include the nasolabial folds, marionette lines, cheek area, and acne scar depressions.

Where will my Radiesse™ treatment be performed?

Since Radiesse™ treatment requires only superficial injections, treatments may be performed in a clinic examination room.

What type of anesthesia will be used for my Radiesse™ treatment?

Patients require regional anesthesia, which is provided by strategic injection of sensory nerves with numbing (local anesthetic) medicine. Since injection of Radiesse requires a medium gauge needle (27 gauge), needle sticks will cause some discomfort without a regional anesthetic.

What should I expect after Radiesse™ treatment?

Light bruising or redness will be evident after injection; redness will subside over
several days. Icing areas will minimize redness and corrective makeup can be used to hide these temporary changes during the first few days following injection.

When will I be able to return to work following Radiesse™ treatment?

Clients can return to work but due to the redness apparent following injection, it is recommended that clients perform their procedure at the end of their workday so that they can have the evening to recuperate. In addition, it is advised to have treatments performed no lateral than 1 week prior to any important business appointments.

Are there any side effects associated with Radiesse™ treatment?

Side effects are events that may be experienced by patients as a result of your surgery and should not be considered adverse events. Our patients are counseled regarding these effects and if experienced they are tolerable and often temporary in duration.

1. Minimal swelling may be evident for 2 to 3 days but will generally subside with no intervention. Swelling is minimized with topical icing for 10 minutes following injection.
2. Over injection may result in small areas of bulging. Bulging is avoided with pinch molding immediately following injection. In addition, patients with a concern should be seen 1 day following injection so that any bulges can be messaged out. The filler will soften 4 to 6 months following injection.
3. Asymmetry can occur infrequently and is either due to asymmetry that was not detected and not corrected duringnjection (usually in the nasolabial folds) or due to over injection on one side. Asymmetry can be avoided by having the client sit upright when marking are as with and without animation and by injecting equal volumes to the two sides of the face. When present, asymmetry may be corrected with a touch up injection at any time usually 2 months following initial injection.

Are there any risks associated with Radiesse™ treatment?

Since Radiesse is the most viscous filler available, areas of injection will feel firmer. In 10 % of patients, nodules may form in the lip, which may be visible on the inner (mucosal or wet) surface of the lip. When present, these nodules can be injected with 0.1cc of steroid at 4 months following initial injection. Some clinicians advocate avoidance of Radiesse injection in the lips.

Although no cases of blindness have been documented, it is feasible that the Radiesse scaffolding when injected around the eyes (for example in the glabella between the eyebrows) could embolize (migrate) and clog up the ophthalmic artery. Blockage of the ophthalmic artery would result in permanent blindness. For this reason, some clinicians avoid placement of Radiesse in the glabellar wrinkles.

Since Radiesse is hypoallergenic, adverse immune reaction and hyper-allergenic response have not been observed.

Was Radiesse developed specifically for filling of facial lines?

Radiesse was created to act as a scaffold for tissue in-growth. As a result, eventually the 25 to 40 micron scaffolds are replaced by the patient’s own connective tissue. Initially, FDA approved Radiesse for the treatment of vocal cord paralysis and to build up the bony stock of the jawbone in dental cases involving receding gum lines. Next, acne scar depressions of the skin were treated successfully with multiple injections. Most recently, sun damaged and aging changes of the skin with resultant wrinkles have been treated successfully by injecting with Radiesse. Wrinkles are best treated by injecting in a cross pattern fashion in the deep layer of the skin.