Artefill - A permanent filler
Posted in Cosmetic Services on June 15, 2010
I have used Artefill for several years and like how it sculpts the face. I have seen patients that had Artefill 12 years ago and the filler is still going strong. Its use in the parenthesis-like lines around the mouth and to lift the cheeks works extremely well.
The filler itself has microscopic acrylic beads suspended in bovine collagen. There is a required free skin test 4 weeks prior to the injection to make sure there is no allergy to the collagen. When the filler is placed under the skin it lifts the depressed area from underneath, potentially obliterating the wrinkle. In the weeks to months after the filler is placed the bovine collagen will naturally degrade but leaving the Artefill beads behind. These beads stimulate your own natural collagen production to occur around each of the beads. The filling capacity depends on how much natural collagen you make. The beads stay, they are never broken down and the are plastered in place by all collagen production it continually stimulates. I often see that immediately after the injection of Artefill the area looks filled but as the bovine collagen degrades the fullness goes away (weeks to several months) but as the patients own collagen is made the fullness reappears (about 4 months to finish the process).
I highly recommend this product to patients that need filler on an ongoing basis. It is much less costly in the long run.
Here is link that was passed to us on a show that regards Artefill.