Juvéderm® is a youth-enhancing, non-permanent injection filler that uses naturally occuring chemicals in the body to make skin smooth, bright, and wrinkle-free. There are several products in the Juvéderm suite that are specialized for specific results, like lip augmentation, crow’s feet erasure, cheek lifts, and more.

Juvéderm is produced by Allergan, the company that also brought Botox to the market.  Juvéderm has been vetted by the FDA and has been used to restore skin to youthful vigor in the United States since 2006.

Juvéderm restores youthful glow, bounce, and plumpness to the skin in and around the face. It is not a synthetic filler, which means the body works with the product to erase wrinkles, crow’s feet, smile lines, and more.

Juvéderm works by attracting water to injection sites, through the properties of hyaluronic acid. Hyaluronic acid is hydrophilic, meaning it loves water and draws water to itself: ideal for smoothing out creases in the face, neck, and around the eyes naturally.

Juvéderm filler injections improve the appearance of facial wrinkles and folds for between nine months and two years, depending on the metabolism of the patient. Because Juvéderm uses hyaluronic acid, which occurs naturally in the body, it is eventually absorbed by the patient’s own metabolism.

Like any face filler injection, there is often discomfort in and around the injection areas after the procedure. Other side effects that have been noted in rare cases are redness or an unevenness to the skin, which can be tended to with the application of an ice pack.

There are several Juvéderm filler injections available in the United States, each with a specific purpose.

Juvéderm XC is a versatile facial filler that incorporates pain-relieving Lidocaine in the injection. This is the “regular” type of Juvéderm and it is primarily used to lift wrinkles, cure unwanted folds, boost weak cheeks, and to plump lips. Juvéderm XC is known to have the most dramatic effect on a patient’s lips. It typically lasts between nine months and two years.

Juvéderm Ultra XC is a more lip-focused filler that provides a subtle, svelte appeal to the lips and reduces lines in and around the lips. This injection can last for a year or longer.

Juvéderm Voluma is specifically formulated for use in the larger areas of the cheeks, temples, and nose. It creates a full, round lift in the cheeks and contours the face around the upper zygomatic bone. Juvéderm Voluma also tends to last longest, nearing two years in some patients.

Juvéderm Vobella is also a lip filler, but it excels at restoring youthful plumpness and vigor to lips that have been made soft and flaccid by time. It is considered the most subtle of the Juvéderm fillers.

Juvéderm Vollure softens the lines that surround the lips and nose, and can last up to eighteen months in some individuals.

Fortunately you don’t have to choose between the various Juvéderm products or know the chemical and physiological differences between them: the medical professional in charge of your injections will be able to discuss the advantages of each with you in detail.

Juvéderm Uses Hylacross Technology To Optimize Smooth Skin

Hylacross technology breaks the hyaluronic acid used in Juvéderm into a variety of different sized molecules, which mimics the natural shape and construction normally found in the body. Creating a mix of particles of varying size allows Juvéderm to blend into the facial tissues easily and mimic and join forces with the natural hyaluronic acid the body produces on its own.

This produces an extremely smooth and non-granular gel that means better results for the patient, including less pain when injecting, and a more even distribution of the gel around the injection area.

Interested in a non-surgical solution to contour your jawline and combat a double chin? Kybella may be the option you’ve been searching for. Kybella is a synthetic acid (deoxycholic acid, which is produced in the stomach and colon) that specifically targets fat cells and dissolves them. It is currently the only FDA-approved injectable fat dissolution drug approved for treatment of excess areas of fat, specifically in the jaw and face. Kybella can also be used to treat smaller areas of excess fat in the underarms or knees, elbows, and the dreaded “bra fat” that some women experience.

How Does Kybella Kill Fat Cells?

Kybella is a fat dissolving filler that is a synthetically created version of an acid already found in the body, deoxycholic acid. It works by dissolving the cell walls and disintegrating the stored adipose within. This causes a pleasing contour of the chin and jawline and creates visible reductions in the double chin and can, in younger patients, tighten up the skin as well. Kybella treatments typically involve more than one session of injections, spaced between four and six weeks apart. Kybella permanently erases fat cells in the body without the need for surgery, incisions, or other invasive procedures.

Can Kybella Treat Belly Fat, Thunder Thighs, or Love Handles?

Kybella is not recommended as a fat solution treatment for large areas of stored adipose tissue in the body. The drug is designed for small areas like around the neck and chin, small parts of the upper arm, and other areas that can cause distressing visual effects, but do not contain a large amount of fat cells. 

Does It Hurt To Get A Kybella Injection?

Kybella is administered through as many as thirty small injections into the target area. Some patients report a bee-sting sensation for the first minute or two as they feel their fat cells dying, and the injections themselves can be uncomfortable for those not used to dealing with needles. Most providers of Kybella apply a topical numbing agent before the procedure starts to minimize the discomfort. 

Known Side Effects of Kybella

The most common side effects are pain and bruising from the injection process, and what has been described as a “jiggly neck” right after the fat cells start to die, which can take between five and ten days to fully dissipate. It is advised to avoid strenuous exercise, hot tubs and saunas during the first week after the injection as well.

Another side effect is numbness in the area where the injection was administered, which typically fades after three to six weeks.

Very rarely, patients experience a large amount of swelling after their injection, a symptom known as bullfrog neck. This can be uncomfortable and visually unappealing, but fades after about a month. Ice packs and compression neckwear can aid in solving this uncommon issue.

What Is It Like To Get A Kybella Treatment, From Start To Finish?

Once a patient arrives at their appointment, they will meet with an approved medical provider to discuss their goals. The physician will evaluate the patient’s individual anatomy and discuss the procedure, often taking a photo and weighing the patient to have more information for follow-up evaluations. 

After that, the numbing agent is usually applied and then the injections take place one the patient has sufficiently numbed. Each injection is quick, and the total process can take anywhere between fifteen and thirty minutes, depending on how much Kybella is needed to achieve the desired outcome. After the injections, a patient should be completely safe to drive home.

Because Kybella typically causes bruising for the first few days after the injection, it is not recommended for patients to get it right before a photo-heavy event like a wedding.

Kybella typically takes between four and six weeks for the effects to become visible, and most often patients require two or three sessions of injections before they achieve their desired result. Most doctor offices will schedule a follow-up four to six weeks after the first series of injections to evaluate if more are needed, and to discuss any potential issues.

After the patient achieves their desired result, no more Kybella treatments are needed: the killing of the fat cells is permanent. However, excessive weight gain after the treatment may cause the double chin to return, and patients over 50 sometimes experience sagging skin once the fat cells are no longer there to pad it out. People with more elastic skin, especially younger patients, usually do not have this issue.