You may have heard about the option of having “lips dissolved” – or the dissolving of other dermal fillers for that matter. Yes, it is true that we do have a product exactly for this, and yes, we do use this product at BLOOMSKIN. But why might we use it?
Hyalase (Hyaluronidase) – what is it? Hyaluronidase is an enzyme that breaks down hyaluronic acid (which is the main ingredient in dermal fillers for the face) and under the brand name we use here at BLOOMSKIN, is called Hyalase. This FDA approved product is an essential one in any cosmetic injector’s clinic (note to you, make sure that wherever you choose to go, the injector has this at hand). It’s use was first approved over 60 years ago.
Why do we use Hyalase? Sometimes starting with a clean canvas when injecting dermal fillers is the best option. It may be that ‘filler migration’ has occurred. This is when the filler drifts, or merges from where it was specifically injected to the surrounding area. This does happen in lips and can result in the lip area looking overly full. Some people refer to this as ‘duck lips’ and it is the reason why so many people are scared of lip treatments – the overly filled, celebrity images we see online are hard to erase from your mind! Filler migration can happen immediately if an injector has used too much product, or selected the incorrect product for the area (too rigid or too volumizing, for example). Or, it can happen over time. It’s not until you see a photo of yourself from some months before, that you realise you’ve now got this blurring between your pink and white lip area – no crisp lip border, which is what we love to see.
Filler migration can happen with any injector, but here at BLOOMSKIN, I pride myself on saying no when people want “another little top up”. Fillers each have a recommended ‘life’ and clinically, it is best to acknowledge that and see out the recommended months. However, Hyalase means that if you don’t want to wait, we can dissolve the prior treatments, wait two weeks for the area to settle and begin again.
Hyalase can also be used for achieving symmetry, and dissolving the bumps that sometimes happen when injecting fillers. Hopefully you’re picking up on the underlying message here – choose the right injector! We do see some people in the clinic who have not been able to get an appointment, went somewhere else with no waiting list, and are now back wanting their treatment dissolved.
What is the Hyalase treatment like? It’s very much like a filler treatment – topical anaesthetic cream to the lips and elsewhere if desired – but there are usually more small injections. In order to dissolve fillers, Hyalase must be injected close to the filler site itself, to address the exact area. It’s quite amazing how quickly the filler dissolves, you will see a fairly immediate reduction in volume. There will be swelling for a couple of days and we then recommend waiting for a couple of weeks to re-treat the area, allowing the tissue to recover appropriately. Hyalase can be used for a very specific area, and not all of the filler always needs to be dissolved.
Hyalase in action: We are very lucky to have the images shown in this blog (above), tracking the lip journey of one of our patients. Please note the images have been taken by our patient in different lighting and are not of a professional standard, but still show the stages of treatment well and we are so grateful to her for sharing them. This patient came to BLOOMSKIN unhappy with her over-filled top lip. It was very firm and did look “done”. She felt the overall affect made her lips too dominant in her face, they felt unnatural, and we agreed, they were not appropriate for her age (early 50s) but they were also not a good example of a filler treatment.
In image #1, you can see a bulging of the top lip. The filler has migrated above the lip and in my opinion, an overly rigid filler has been used, on top of older filler. Unfortunately this means the original filler has not broken down naturally and with additional filler to the site, it has migrated into the surrounding tissue. Plan of action: Hyalase to the rescue!
Image #2 shows the lips 24 hours after the filler in the top lip has been dissolved. My patient found the two weeks with very deflated lips and prominent “bar codes” above, not much fun – the difference was quite significant!
Image #3 was taken half way through the re-treatment of filler to the top lip – a great example of just how filler can support and define lips.
And of course the final image, #4, shows a happy patient, two weeks post treatment – lovely natural definition and volume to enjoy for many months more. She is even wearing her favourite red lipstick – no “lipstick bleeds” with a lovely crisp lip border.
- Patients with anaphylactic allergies for bee and wasp stings are contraindicated for hyaluronidase. However, in the case of a filler emergency, a good injector will weigh the risk benefits for you to receive hyaluronidase.
- Prices vary depending on extent of treatment.
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