Restylane® Injections in Naples, Florida

What is Restylane®?

Restylane® is a crystal-clear, biodegradable NASHA (Non-Animal Stabilized Hyaluronic Acid) gel, which is FDA approved for injection into the skin in tiny amounts with a very fine needle. Since this is made from safe natural occurring non-animal material, there is minimal risk of an allergy.

How long does it last?

• Restylane usually lasts between 6 - 12 months.
• The length of time the effect lasts is highly individual. It depends on many factors, such as the structure of the skin, lifestyle and age, as well as on the degree of perfection demanded by the individual.
• Unlike permanent treatments or implants, Restylane always offers the chance to re-evaluate the need when the initial effect has worn off.
• A follow-up treatment can be performed at any time after the previous treatment. In general, a follow-up treatment is required after 6 - 12 months.
• Clinical experience indicates that regular follow-up treatments add to the duration.

Who is a candidate for this procedure?

• If you have a desire to enhance lips or fill in depressions or wrinkles.
• Men and women are both candidates for this treatment.

Intended Results:

• The result is instantaneous, producing a long-lasting, natural enhancement, gentle and safe to the skin.
• For patients who desire fuller or more well defined lips.
• For patients who desire to correct thin lips and/or the wrinkles around the mouth, for a more normal appearance.
• For patients who desire softening of scars, depressions, or wrinkles.

Procedure Description:

• Usually topical anesthetic is used before the injections to help numb the areas to be treated.
• The area is then prepped and cleaned, and then utilizing a very small needle the Restylane is introduced in the dermal layer of the skin.
• Lidocaine nerve blocks may be used to make the areas treated numb to reduce pain. This may last for several hours after the injections.

Featured Cases

Click thumbnails below for larger view or click here for more Restylane® / Perlane® cases.

Case Number 17:		Case Number 18:
Before	After	Before	After

The before and after pictures above depict ACTUAL PATIENTS of Naples Plastic Surgeon Kent V. Hasen, M.D. Your results may vary.

Recuperation and Healing

• After the injections, the areas remain red and slightly swollen for several hours.
• The areas treated may feel firm to touch, but this is usually not visible.

Restylane Frequently Asked Questions

What is Restylane?

Restylane is a gel that is injected into the skin in order to add volume to lips and lift up wrinkles and folds. Restylane consists of hyaluronic acid, which is a natural substance already present in your body. Once in the skin, Restylane works by creating volume. Some dermal fillers are derived from animal substances. The hyaluronic acid in Restylane is non-animal.

Do I need to have a skin test?

No.

What is hyaluronic acid?

Hyaluronic acid is a natural substance that is found throughout your body. It gives volume to the skin, lubricates the joints and gives the eyes their shape. The hyaluronic acid in Restylane is stabilized for long duration and is not of animal or human origin.

How was Restylane developed?

How is a treatment performed?

During treatment, the crystal-clear Restylane gel is injected into the skin in tiny amounts with a very fine needle. The gel produces volume under the wrinkle, which is lifted up and smoothed out. When enhancing lips or facial contours, Restylane adds volume and shape to the treated area.

How long will the treatment session take?

Treatment with Restylane is a very quick and easy process. As no pre-test is needed, the treatment can be carried out immediately. A treatment generally takes 30 minutes. The time differs somewhat, depending on the correction you wish to have performed.

What can be treated?

Restylane can be used for smoothing out folds and wrinkles, lip enhancements and shaping facial contours. The most common areas are the glabellar lines (between the eyebrows), the nasolabial folds (from the root of the nose to the angle of the mouth) and the lips (an FDA "off-label" use), although other sites can also be treated. Very superficial or very deep wrinkles may be difficult to correct.

Does it hurt?

Most people find the injections relatively painless. They may prick a little. If you like, a topical anesthetic can be applied to the area being treated prior to your procedure. When enhancing the lips, a local anesthetic injection is often given.

How soon will I see the results?

The results can be seen immediately.

How long does the effect of a Restylane treatment last?

The length of time the effect of a Restylane treatment lasts is very individual and depends on many factors, such as the structure of your skin, lifestyle, age, the degree of perfection demanded and the injection technique of the practitioner. Experience indicates that touch-up and follow-up treatments will add to the duration. Most of Dr. Hasen's patients choose to have a new treatment within a year after the treatment of wrinkles and folds and about six months after a lip enhancement.

What will I look like after the treatment?

Immediately after the treatment, you can expect slight redness, swelling, tenderness or an itching sensation in the treated area. This is a normal result of the injection. The discomfort is temporary and generally disappears in a few days. After a lip treatment, the lips may become swollen and look somewhat uneven. This can persist for a few days (up to a week). If the discomfort continues, please contact Dr. Hasen.

How will my skin look without follow-up treatments?

The correction will gradually disappear until your skin looks like it did before the treatment. Follow-up injections will help you maintain your correction.

What should I bear in mind after my treatment with Restylane?

During the first 48 hours after your treatment, do not massage or rub the treated area. If you have had a lip enhancement, avoid puckering your lips for the first two days after the treatment. Until the initial swelling and redness have resolved, do not expose the treated area to intense heat (e.g. in a solarium or by sunbathing) or extreme cold.

Are there any side-effects?

The rate of reactions to Restylane is very low. However, after the treatment some common injection-related reactions may occur, such as swelling, redness, pain, itching, discoloration and tenderness at the injection site. These typically resolve spontaneously within a few days after injection into the skin and within a week after the injection into the lips. Other types of reactions are very rare, but about 1 in 2000 treated patients have experienced localized reactions thought to be of a hypersensitive nature. These have usually consisted of swelling at the injection site, sometimes affecting the surrounding tissues. Redness, tenderness and rarely acne-like formations have also been reported. These reactions have either started a few days after the injection or after a delay of two to four weeks, and have generally been described as mild to moderate and self-limiting with an average duration of two weeks. This text does not contain all the information known about these products.

Can patients with allergies of different kinds be more sensitive to Restylane?

So far, no connection between patients with allergies and patients who react to Restylane has been established.

Why do the lips sometimes become very swollen immediately after a Restylane treatment?

The cause of this is not yet known, but there is no reason to believe that this is an immunological reaction. Normally, the swelling is gone within a week after injection into the lips.

Can Restylane be removed?

No However, Restylane dissolves naturally with time. If you feel uncertain about the desired result, you can choose to have the treatment done in steps on different occasions.

Can Restylane replace surgical procedures?

No, but Restylane can be used in conjunction with surgery to fill out wrinkles that cannot be removed by surgery.

Can Restylane be used if I have undergone laser treatment or chemical peeling?

If you have recently had some other kind of facial treatment, you are recommended to wait until the treated area is totally healed and the skin has normalized (usually 4-6 weeks) before you undergo a Restylane treatment.

Does Restylane get stiffer in cold weather? What happens in the sun?

You should not expose the treated area to intense heat (e.g. in a solarium or by sunbathing) or extreme cold for the first few days after the treatment in order to avoid the risk of inflammation as the area has been disturbed. However, once Restylane has integrated into the body, it will adjust to your normal body temperature.

What should I think about before I have a Restylane treatment?

Look at yourself in the mirror and think about the result you are expecting. Try to convey your expectations to Dr. Hasen before the treatment and ask him if it is possible.