Dermal filler in Alpharetta
Dermal filler is a hyaluronic acid gel placed under the skin to restore volume that has been lost, or to support a structure that has descended. Used well it is close to invisible: a face looks rested rather than filled. Used badly it is the reason a whole category of jokes exists. The difference is almost entirely about how much, where, and — most often — whether at all.
What it is
Hyaluronic acid is a sugar molecule the body already produces, cross-linked in manufacture into a gel with a particular firmness and lift. Different formulations sit at different depths: a firm gel placed on bone provides structural support, a soft one placed superficially smooths a line. Choosing the wrong firmness for the depth is a large share of results that look wrong.
Once placed, the gel occupies space and draws a small amount of water to itself, and the body breaks it down slowly through an enzyme it already makes. Because it is hyaluronic acid, it can also be dissolved deliberately with an injected enzyme — which is the property that makes it the appropriate first filler for anybody, and which no other category of injectable shares.
What it feels like
Pressure more than pain. Most areas are treated with a numbing cream and the products themselves contain a local anesthetic, so the first injection is the sharpest and the rest is a firm pushing sensation. Cannula work — a blunt tube rather than a needle — feels stranger and hurts less. Appointments run thirty to sixty minutes depending on how many areas are treated.
Downtime
Two to fourteen days, and it varies more than any other treatment on this menu. Swelling peaks at twenty-four to forty-eight hours. Bruising is common, occurs in roughly a third of treatments, and takes five to ten days to clear. We would not plan a treatment inside two weeks of an event you care about.
How long it lasts
Six to eighteen months depending on the product, the depth, and the area — filler in a mobile area like the lips breaks down faster than filler placed on bone. Some deep structural placement is still measurably present at two years, which is an argument for placing less rather than a selling point.
Who it’s for — and who it isn’t
A good fit
- Volume loss with a clear structural cause: a receded mid-face, a flattened chin, a temple hollow.
- Someone who wants to be assessed for where the change should be made rather than told they will be treated where they pointed.
- A distensible rolling acne scar, in small amounts, as an adjunct to collagen remodeling rather than instead of it.
Not a fit
- A face that already carries a substantial amount of product. The answer there is a year off, and sometimes a conversation about dissolving what is there — not another syringe.
- An under-eye hollow that is a shadow cast by descended tissue and thin skin. Product placed there adds weight to the shadow and frequently becomes visible under the surface.
- Anyone asking for a fixed number of syringes decided before the exam. We place what the assessment supports, in stages.
Who performs it here
Jordan Keel
MSN, NP-C
Founder & Lead Injector
Practices under a nurse protocol agreement with, and under the medical direction of, Anita Rao, MD.
Camille Duarte
RN, BSN
Aesthetic Nurse Injector
Performs delegated medical treatments under the medical direction and standing orders of Anita Rao, MD.
Sydney Pham
PA-C
Physician Assistant, Injector
Practices under a job description approved by, and under the medical direction of, Anita Rao, MD.
What it costs
Filler is priced by what is placed, and how much is placed is decided at the exam. Publishing a per-syringe number invites you to plan around a quantity before anybody has looked at your face, and it makes the appointment about hitting that number. We give you a written plan with a total at the consultation, staged if staging is the right answer.
Questions about dermal filler
How much will I need?
Less than most people expect, in more places than most people expect. A common outcome at a consultation is a smaller quantity placed somewhere other than where you were pointing, staged across two appointments. If we cannot answer this before the exam, that is because the honest answer requires the exam.
Is it reversible?
Hyaluronic acid filler can be dissolved with an injected enzyme, usually over one or two appointments. It is not instant and it is not surgical precision — dissolving also removes some of your own hyaluronic acid in the area — but it is genuinely reversible, and it is why we use this category first for anybody new to injectables.
Will it look obvious?
Not if the amount and the placement are right. What people recognize as obvious filler is almost always volume placed superficially, in quantity, in the same three areas of every face. The result we aim for is one where other people cannot identify what changed.
How long does it last, honestly?
Six to eighteen months for the visible effect. Some deeper placement persists longer than the visible effect does, which matters because it means the next treatment is building on a base that is still there. That is an argument for treating conservatively rather than a reason to top up on schedule.
What is the recovery like — bruising, swelling, and for how long?
Swelling for two to four days, worst on the morning after. Bruising in about a third of treatments, five to ten days. Lips swell more than anything else and look their strangest at forty-eight hours. We tell you this in advance so that day two is expected rather than alarming.