Edema after filler injections: what to do

The authors of advertising texts devoted to contouring and other types of anti-aging injections almost always emphasize the complete safety and hypoallergenicity of drugs, but often keep silent about the inevitable local adverse reactions.

Edema after hyaluronic acid fillers occurs in almost every patient. Most often, this is not a reason for panic and "showdowns"; with a beautician, but some vigilance and simple grooming procedures still can not hurt.

Why can beauty injections cause such a “side effect”, how to cope with it on your own and when should you seek medical help?

Causes of edema after fillers

A slight swelling of the soft tissues after the introduction of hyaluronic fillers is not considered a complication, this is an expected effect that occurs due to the combination of two factors:

• Natural reaction of the skin to injections and associated microtraumas.
• GK Special Property – hydrophilicity – those. the ability to accumulate and retain moisture in the intercellular matrix

The cosmetologist warns the patient about the possibility of such edema while planning the procedure. They pass on their own, after 2-3 days (sometimes a little longer, much depends on the individual characteristics of the organism). Additionally, accelerate the disappearance of "traumatic" swelling can be simply applied to problem areas with ice.

Possible causes of facial swelling in women and their impact on the results of the procedure

Photo 1 – pronounced edema after injections in the paraorbital region:

Much worse if the swelling is severe and persists for a long time. There may be several reasons for this, but the most common – cosmetologist's mistake when choosing the type and dosage of the drug or during the injection:

• Excessive administration of HA into soft tissues, especially in lip augmentation, almost always causes prolonged edema. In this case, hyaluronidase injections, manual kneading massage, physiotherapy, etc. can help (for more details, see the article "How to remove hyaluronic acid from the lips") can lead to the appearance of blisters, tourniquets and other tissue deformations. It most often occurs in the sensitive area around the eyes.
  
Infection – perhaps the most unfortunate scenario. It occurs due to gross violations of the injection technique or due to an insufficient degree of purification of the drug itself. It can cause many associated complications, even life-threatening, so at the first suspicion of infection, you should urgently seek medical help. Main symptoms: swelling does not improve with time, but only increases and causes pain.
Patient non-compliance with post-procedure recommendations: specialists usually advise in the first 5-10 days after "beauty shots" do not drink alcohol and other food products that lead to the accumulation and retention of moisture in the tissues, as well as refrain from visiting the solarium, sauna and protect the treated area from direct sunlight.

An important nuance: there is a category of people whose body is initially prone to severe swelling. Such "lucky ones" even a perfectly matched drug and low-impact injection techniques will not help – the first few days the treated area will look, frankly, awful. Exit one – plan the time of the procedure in advance so that you have at least a week left before important meetings and going out.

Photo 2 – swelling on the second day after lip contouring:

Is it possible to completely avoid the appearance of edema after the introduction of fillers? And how to get rid of them?

There is a special "careful" option for the introduction of hyaluronic fillers: regardless of the main technique (a series of successive injections or linear tunnels), the needle is not completely pulled out of the skin, but simply changes the direction of its movement – this reduces the total number of punctures.
The size of the edema after injections is noticeably reduced by applying ice to the correction sites for 5-10 minutes. The patient can continue the treatment with ice at home, repeating the application procedure at intervals of several hours, it is only important not to get carried away and remember about the possibility of thermal injury to the skin.
Normal, non-problematic edema resolves on its own in 2-3 days, on the lips it can linger longer – up to 5-10 days. The more often the correction is carried out and the more filler is injected into the soft tissues, the longer the swelling lasts (in some cases - up to a week) and the more noticeable it is.
If it seems that "something went wrong", first of all you should contact the beautician who performed the procedure: it will not be difficult for a competent specialist to correct his own mistake. But if you have doubts about the qualifications of the master (for example, when injections were made in an unfamiliar salon / clinic), it makes sense to immediately consult with his more reputable colleagues.

Read the most interesting articles in Telegram!

Expert comments:

1.

Vishchipanova Nadezhda Leonidovna,  cosmetologist «Frau Klinik», candidate of medical sciences:

Fillers based on hyaluronic acid – it is an excellent assistant in the fight against wrinkles and age-related changes in the contours and proportions of the face. But! Everything has a measure, indications and contraindications.

In the lower part of the face, too much gel or too frequent procedures (when the previous gel has not completely resolved) can lead to edema and pastosity. , as well as with hypercorrection of the zygomatic region, as a result of which the lymph flow is disturbed.

Sometimes edema is promoted by the wrong choice of filler.

Such side effects can be avoided with the right choice of the drug, with the exception of patients with a tendency to edema, and non-abuse of contouring. You can reduce or get rid of edema with the help of physiotherapy and cosmetic procedures

 

2.

Marianna Karapetyan,

leading cosmetologist at the Aesthetic Clinic of the European Medical Center (EMC): Hyaluronic acid has a high hydrophilicity, that is, the ability to attract water to itself. That is why some patients note the appearance of puffiness after the biorevitalization procedure or facial modeling with fillers. In principle, this is a normal side effect.

Usually, the puffiness goes down in the next day or two. But it can be expressed differently in different people. There are patients who are naturally prone to edema: often they appear already in the morning, especially if a person drank too much liquid at night. Another category – patients with hernias of the lower eyelids. For both, swelling after the procedure can reach a maximum, since they are already predisposed to it.

However, modern aesthetic medicine does not stand still, and the leading manufacturers of injectable preparations for biorevitalization and contouring have already created a line of fillers containing low molecular weight hyaluronic acid, which practically does not cause swelling. It is successfully used for volumetric modeling of the face. Thus, it can be said that choosing the right injectable for a patient – this is one of the most important criteria for a successful outcome of the procedure.

Read also:

Proper hand care 3.

Tobina Natalya Nikolaevna

, dermatologist-cosmetologist at Estet Clinic Swelling and bruising after fillers are part of the standard recovery period. If we are talking about lip augmentation, in this case, swelling disappears in a period of up to 10 days and this is also a variant of the norm.

If we talk about complications, then first of all, I do not recommend affecting the area under the eyes with fillers – in this case, edema is inevitable and it is likely that it will persist for quite a long time. Also, swelling is possible if the doctor injected you with a larger amount of the drug than your skin required. And, of course, do not forget about the doctor's recommendations, the risk of any side effects after the procedure increases if the patient neglects them.

I recommend seeking medical attention if you still experience swelling or any other undesirable side effects after 7-10 days.

 

4.

Natalya Viktorovna Vasilyeva

, doctor of the highest category, cosmetologist-dermatologist of the DoctorPlastic clinic Recently, in our clinic, there has been just a wave of patients with complications after contour plastic surgery. Most often, the use of non-certified drugs at home leads to problems, but the latest surge is most likely associated with insufficient qualifications, experience and a decrease in the level of responsibility of doctors. Sometimes patients come in a serious condition, with fever, swelling and complications from improperly performed treatment: the cosmetologist tries to correct the situation on his own and makes mistakes again.

 

5.

Zobnina Olga Nikolaevna

, leading cosmetologist of the clinic "Beauty Line": Hyaluronic acid has hydrophilic properties and attracts water molecules, one HA molecule attracts about 2000 H2O – that is why edema is formed, but they are not a complication. You can avoid them by using a special technique for setting fillers – deep into the muscle. Most often, swelling occurs in the middle third of the face, paraorbital region, between the eyebrows and the nasolacrimal sulcus.

Skin hydration: a commercial move or a pledge of youth Source: http://www.tecrussia.ru

Today, fillers are considered not only an excellent tool for filling wrinkles and superficial correction of facial lines. Experts consider fillers as an effective tool for serious facial reconstruction. However, such a reconstruction is possible and safe only with an impeccable knowledge of the anatomical features of the face.

Wolfgang Redka-Svoboda, MD, surgeon, international speaker, medical director of TEOXANA Germany (Germany) presented a report and a master class on the topic "The evolution of hyaluronic filler injection techniques – from wrinkle-line corrections to global reconstruction face Detailed anatomy of the fat compartments, separating septa and the musculo-aponeurotic system for optimal correction results":