Features of the blanching technique for the correction of delicate areas

When injecting correction of age-related changes, it is always necessary to take into account the characteristics of the skin in the part of the face that is being treated. For delicate areas   such as the periorbital area, lips, neck, the correct choice of preparation density is very important in order to achieve the desired result. Various fillers from Merz give the specialist the opportunity to choose the best option. PhD, dermatologist, cosmetologist, expert trainer of Merz Aesthetics (Russia) Tatyana Pavlenko shared her experience with estet-portal.com readers.

What are some of your own insights on blanching technique and the choice of preparations for it?

When we talk about the Blanching technique, we always talk about two preparations - Belotero Soft and Belotero Balance (ed. - from Merz Aesthetics). But in their application there is a very clear distinction that must not be violated, because this is fraught with undesirable phenomena.

For the periorbital area, for Neck Blanching, only Belotero Soft should be used, regardless of the thickness of the skin of our patients or their gender.

The fact is that in these areas the skin is quite thin, and always, and this has been histologically proven. Belotero Balance may turn out to be somewhat, if not rough, then more dense for these zones than is required for correction. Accordingly, we will get long-term persistent and non-absorbable elevations, which normally should not be with this technique. And we can get, as a result, an unsatisfied patient.

At the same time, Belotero Balance will be more adequate than Belotero Soft, for example, in the glabella area, forehead statics, nasolabial folds, marionette wrinkles. This is the drug of choice for people who have fairly thick skin: these are male patients, patients with severe skin elastosis. In this case, in areas excluding the periorbital region and the neck, it is more appropriate to use Belotero Balance. It will allow you to get a long-term result and high-quality correction even after a single procedure.

How to choose the right needle for a quality Blancching technique?

If we are talking about Blanching of the periorbital zone, it is possible to perform it better with a smaller diameter needle   namely with a 32 or 33 G needle, contrary to the recommendations to use a 30 G needle.

The fact is that the skin here is very thin, the 30 G needle can be quite thick and go deeper than you planned. That is, we do not perform the blanching technique, we work in the micropapular technique. This in itself is not at all scary, but we can save a lot of material and achieve a more superficial insertion by working directly with smaller diameter needles with Belotero Soft.

What are the features of Blanching in the lip area?

If we are talking about working with purse-string wrinkles, then, of course, the priority is the initial use of botulinum toxin. In this zone, we work delicately, with small volumes of botulinum toxin, getting some relaxation, but by no means a complete blockage of this zone. Then we complete the smoothing process with the introduction of Belotero Soft   for thin-skinned patients and Belotero Balance   for patients with thick skin and severe elastosis.

In what other areas do you recommend using Belotero Soft and Belotero Balance?

Besides the use of the Blanching technique, we use Belotero Soft very actively in our clinic, where we have not only aesthetic patients, but also patients of a dermatologist.

We treat xerosis of the lips by injecting Belotero Soft with a 25G cannula into the red border of the lips.

We have a group of patients who really love this method, and before the autumn-winter period, this is most often in October, we perform the introduction of Belotero Soft. This is by no means a volume replenishment, this is precisely the prolonged hydration of those dry lips, which in the autumn-winter period give their owners unpleasant sensations.

Also, when working with dry elbows, with xerosis of the elbows, we use the papular technique of introducing Belotero Soft into this area. A single injection is enough to maintain the moisturizing effect for 3-4 months.

To correct the nasolacrimal sulcus in patients with a tendency to skeletalization, sometimes even to mask hernias in those patients who are not ready for any surgical intervention, we use Belotero Balance in our practice. We use it both by cannula and by insertion with a thin 30G needle, which allows you to make this correction very delicately and get a good beautiful clinical result.