Dr. Michele Green is an NYC Allergan Platinum Injector, utilizing Botox and the Juvederm family of fillers, to help restore, rejuvenate and enhance your face to achieve a more youthful and enhanced appearance. As one of the first doctors in New York to incorporate the use of Juvederm at her practice, Dr. Green is an expert in dermal fillers and has treated thousands of happy NYC patients.
Haute Beauty sits down with Dr. Michele Green, a New York City-based anti-aging expert, to learn more about dermal fillers
Photo Credit: Photo courtesy of Dr. Michele Green
“As we age, our bodies decrease producing hyaluronic acid and we cannot replace what is lost. By injecting a hyaluronic acid filler, such as Juvederm, we can replace lost facial volume, enhance our features, and restore a more youthful appearance,” says Dr. Green.
Juvederm is an injectable filler that is composed of hyaluronic acid and restores the body’s own natural hyaluronic acid that is currently being depleted. The injection of hyaluronic acid into deep wrinkles, creases, and folds adds volume and fullness and enhances the moisture content of the skin.
HB: What can Dermal fillers treat?
Lip Enhancement
Lip augmentation has become one of the most popular cosmetic procedures in dermatology. The treatment of the lips includes not just lip enhancement but creating symmetry in uneven lips, reshaping and contouring the lips. A large part of treating the lips is also treating the visible signs of aging around the lips, and the vertical lines above and below the lips.
Cheek Enhancement
Volume loss in the midface is a chief concern of many patients and Juvederm Voluma XC is the ideal way to replenish this lost collagen and improve facial sagging. By restoring the lost volume through facial contouring, the appearance of the jowls are improved and the face is lifted, resulting in a non-surgical facelift.
Jaw Contouring
Many patients are unhappy about the appearance of their jawline. By injecting filer around the jawline, and restoring a more youthful appearance, sagging jowls can be corrected.
Tear Trough
Under-eye hollows and dark circles are able to be corrected with dermal fillers injected into the tear trough area. Patients who have a large degree of wrinkling or fat may not be good candidates for this treatment. The best patients for dermal fillers in the tear trough area have under-eye hollows without an excessive amount of skin laxity.
Nasolabial folds
Nasolabial folds, or smile lines are one of the first areas in the face to experience volume loss. Juvederm Ultra Plus is made especially for these deep lines, creases, and the lines which extend down the mouth to the oral commissures, the marionette lines.
Volume Loss
Dermal fillers can be used to create a liquid facelift. By using a combination approach, and layering more than one dermal filler, the different areas of volume loss can be restored to provide complete facial rejuvenation. Through the art of a liquid facelift, many of Dr. Green’s NYC patients can avoid having invasive plastic surgery.
HB: How to know which filler is right for you?
“It has to do with how everyone is aging. In other words, a young person is going to need different kinds of dermal fillers or injections than someone older, obviously, because someone younger has better skin quality and less volume loss. So, you have to look at someone’s anatomy and you also have to look at, you know, how they’re aging to decide what to do,” says Dr. Green.
“Some fillers are deep and some are very thin. Some are meant to be put deep and some are meant to be used superficially. So, something like Sculptra or Radiesse are deep dermal fillers. So, people that want that volume, you need to build up the collagen over time with a dermal filler like that,” she adds.
HB: What is the process like?
A complete consultation is performed by Dr. Green in her New York City, Upper East Side private office, in Manhattan. Photographs are taken for your medical records and the treatment areas are numbed with a topical anesthetic.
“Lidocaine, which is a local anesthetic, is compounded in the filler syringe itself. However, some patients are more sensitive to these injections and that is why we apply a topical numbing, lidocaine cream, to your treatment area before your injections of Juvederm,” says Dr. Green.
After 30 minutes, the numbing cream is removed and the treatment area is cleaned with alcohol. Filler and Botox are often injected at the same time since Botox smooths the forehead wrinkles, in areas where Juvederm cannot be used. The areas of the face are injected with Juvederm, and ice packs are applied immediately afterward to minimize swelling.
HB: How to avoid over-filling the treated areas?
“Less is more has always been my philosophy because you don’t want to overfill someone. The key is to have a natural result. Nobody wants to be overfilled. If somebody is overfilled, it means that I have to use something called Hyaluronidase, which is an injection that dissolves those fillers,” she says.
Photo Credit: Photo courtesy of Dr. Michele Green
Results
The results of Juvederm injections are immediate. There may be some immediate swelling at the injection site. Depending on which type of Juvederm filler was used, there may be two days to two weeks of residual swelling. Some patients are more sensitive to this side effect and swell for longer periods of time. It is best to plan your cosmetic dermal filler injections at a time which allows possible swelling or bruising and a few days of possible downtime.
HB: How long do dermal fillers last?
A common question asked is how long do dermal fillers last. The answer depends on many variables. First, it depends on which type of injectable was used. Secondly, it depends on how many syringes were used. Lastly, it depends on which anatomic area was injected and how fast an individual absorbs the dermal filler. Everyone metabolizes Juvederm differently and the longevity of the product is based on an individual’s metabolism.
- Generally, Juvederm Ultra Plus XC lasts 9 to 12 months.
- Juvederm Vollure lasts up to 18 months in duration.
- Juvederm Volbella lasts approximately one year.
- Juvederm Voluma lasts 12 months or longer.
- Restylane lasts 6 to 9 months after injection.
- Sculptra lasts up to two years after full correction.
- Radiesse injections last from 12 to 24 months.
Dr. Michele S. Green is a board-certified dermatologist with over 20 years of experience, Dr. Green’s approach to facial rejuvenation is “less is more.” The ideal results from dermal fillers will leave you looking younger and more refreshed, without any obvious signs of treatment and little or no side effects. To learn more about whether dermal fillers or other cosmetic treatments may be best suited for you, please visit www.michelegreenmd.com
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