Restylane is the trade name for a range of

injectable filler Injectable filler (injectable cosmetic filler, injectable facial filler) is a soft tissue filler injected into the skin at different depths to help fill in facial wrinkles, provide facial volume, and augment facial features: restoring a smoother ap ...

s with a specific formulation of non-animal sourced

hyaluronic acid Hyaluronic acid (; abbreviated HA; conjugate base hyaluronate), also called hyaluronan, is an anionic, nonsulfated glycosaminoglycan distributed widely throughout connective, epithelial, and neural tissues. It is unique among glycosaminoglycans ...

(HA). In the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, Restylane was the first hyaluronic acid filler to be approved by the

U.S. Food and Drug Administration The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a federal agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is responsible for protecting and promoting public health through the control and supervision of food s ...

(FDA) for cosmetic injection into subdermal facial tissues. Restylane is produced by Galderma.

Medical uses

Restylane is most commonly used for

lip enhancement Lip augmentation is a cosmetic procedure that modifies the shape of the lips using fillers, such as collagen or implants. The procedure may be performed to increase lip size, correct asymmetry, create protrusion, or adjust the ratio of the top an ...

(volume and contouring). It is used to diminish

wrinkles A wrinkle, also known as a rhytid, is a fold, ridge or crease in an otherwise smooth surface, such as on skin or fabric. Skin wrinkles typically appear as a result of ageing processes such as glycation, habitual sleeping positions, loss of bo ...

and aging lines of the face such as the

nasolabial fold The nasolabial folds, commonly known as "smile lines" or "laugh lines", are facial features. They are the two skin folds that run from each side of the nose (human), nose to the corners of the mouth (human), mouth. They are defined by facial struct ...

s (nose to mouth lines) and melomental folds (sad mouth corners). It may also be used for filling aging-related facial hollows and "orbital troughs" (under and around the eyes), as well as for cheek volume and contouring of the chin, lips and nose.

Side effects

A treatment with a dermal filler like Restylane can cause some temporary bruising in addition to swelling and numbness for a few days. In rare cases there has been reports of lumps or granulomas. These side effects can be easily reversed with a treatment of

hyaluronidase Hyaluronidases are a family of enzymes that catalyse the degradation of hyaluronic acid (HA). Karl Meyer classified these enzymes in 1971, into three distinct groups, a scheme based on the enzyme reaction products. The three main types of hyal ...

, which is an enzyme that speeds up the natural degradation of the injected hyaluronic acid filler. Several studies have been done to understand the long-term side effects of restylane and other hyaluronic acid fillers. In certain cases, the filler results in a granulomatous foreign body reaction. Even though side effects are rare Restylane should not be used in or near areas where there is or has been skin disease, inflammation or related conditions. Restylane has not been tested in pregnant or breast-feeding women.

Treatment techniques

Most injectors inject the filler with a small needle under the skin. Numbing creams or injections decrease pain. A new way to use Restylane was described in the August 2007 issue of the ''

Journal of Drugs in Dermatology The ''Journal of Drugs in Dermatology'' is a monthly peer-reviewed medical journal of dermatology published by Sanovaworks. The journal was established in 2002 by Mohs surgeon Perry Robins, founder of the Skin Cancer Foundation. It is the fl ...

'' by

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

cosmetic doctor Tom van Eijk, whose "fern pattern" injection technique aims to restore dermal elasticity rather than to fill underneath the wrinkles. {{cite journal , title = A Novel Method to Inject Hyaluronic Acid: The Fern Pattern Technique , author1=Van Eijk, Tom , author2=Braun, M. , journal =

, url = https://jddonline.com/articles/dermatology/S1545961607P0805X , volume = 6 , issue = 8 , pages = 805–8 , year = 2007, pmid = 17763611

References

Glycosaminoglycans Oral and maxillofacial surgery Oral surgery Plastic surgery filler Otorhinolaryngology