Fillers for Lift in the Face

Fillers often lift various areas of the face as a secondary effect of volumizing. Think about a balloon that is full. It is tight and takes up a lot of space, yet when it starts to deflate, the rubber wrinkles and the shape falls. This is similar but more complicated for our faces; we lose collagen, elastin, fat, bone and muscle. All of these “take up space” so when we try to replace collagen and fat, we actually also cause the skin to lift.

Many people’s concern is focused on their jowls or jawline. People often say to me in their consultation visit that they feel they have jowls or are starting to look like their mother or grandmother. When I try to point out that the problem may be in their cheeks, they look at me with puzzlement. However, when I try to hold their cheek up as they look in the mirror, they often get it.

Jowls form due to the “loss of air in our balloon.” This starts at the upper level of the cheek when we lose both fat and collagen under our eye as well as the top of the cheekbone. The skin starts to slide down and winds up creating a fold next to the nose (nasolabial fold) and mouth (marionette lines).

We can try to mask the fold by putting filler into it, and this is pretty effective. However, to get the best results, we want to think of it as loss of volume, not filling of a line. When we give back a bit of volume to the upper cheek, we restore the height of the cheek and along with it, comes the jowl. The outside part of the cheek lifts the jowl and the inside part lifts the nasolabial fold. Occasionally we will put some volume back into the area of the fold, to smooth it out.

Sometimes we can also inject filler into the cheek or jawline toward the ear, as this also loses volume, which can also result in “taking up the slack” lifting the jowl.

Another way to improve the lower jawline is to use botulinum toxin. The neck muscles pull the jawline down. If we relax these muscles a bit, the jawline tends to elevate and improve the sharpness of our jawline, so it doesn’t look like it is melting into the neck.

It has taken many years of study and practice to intimately understand the relationship between soft tissues of the face and a healthy youthful appearance. The technologies of filler has improved as well, making them longer lasting and more flexible. WE KNOW YOU want to look natural, and this is our goal as well. By understanding the structure of the face, we can achieve the most natural and beneficial appearance that is only distinctly you.

Before (right) and after (left) injectable fillers (Juvéderm® VOLLURE™ XC, Juvéderm® VOLBELLA® XC, & Juvéderm® Ultra Plus). Photos courtesy of Advanced Dermatology, LLC. Results may vary