Juvederm Voluma offers a non-surgical, long-lasting way to restore volume that has diminished from the face, particularly in the cheek area.

Everyone’s face ages slightly differently. Some people develop a fair amount of wrinkles and fine lines, while others start to notice that their skin is sagging or loose. Still others notice that their face has begun to look thinner and more gaunt. The cheeks may appear sunken and deep hollow develop beneath the eyes.

Volume loss is usually unavoidable. Many people lose about 10 percent of the fat and volume from their cheeks and under eye area by the age of 35. After that, it’s common to lose about 10 percent of the fat from the facial area every 10 years or so.

The good news is that there are ways to restore volume lost in that area and that some options don’t involve any surgery at all.

What is Juvederm Voluma?

Juvederm Voluma is a sibling of the injectable filler Juvederm. Like its sister, it’s made out of hyaluronic acid. Unlike its sister, it is FDA approved for adding volume to the cheek area. It’s the first dermal filler designed to add volume, not simply fill in lines.

The hyaluronic acid found in Voluma is thicker and more viscous than the hyaluronic acid found in other fillers. In clinical studies for the injectable, patients looked about five years younger after getting the injections.

Is Voluma Right for You?

One sign that Voluma is right for you is if you have noticed some loss of volume in your cheek area. As fat and volume decreases, the cheeks start to look flat, instead of round or curved. The chin and jaw area start to look wider than the cheek area, as well.

Loss of facial volume is just one way to see if Voluma is a good option for you. Your overall health also plays a role in determining if the injectable is the right pick for you. Usually, people need to be in good overall health to be good candidates for the treatment.

It’s also important that you fully understand what the injections can and can’t do. Your facial plastic surgeon will give you a good idea of what to expect from the treatment. It’s a good idea to ask any questions you have during your consultation with the surgeon.

What Happens After the Injection?

Usually, it takes just a few minutes for a trained surgeon to inject Voluma into the treatment areas. After that, results can last for up to two years. After two years, if you decide to repeat the treatment, you’ll most likely need less Voluma to get the same results.

But what do you need to do right after treatment? While there’s no downtime required after Voluma injections, there are a few things you might want to do and a few things to avoid to improve your results.

For one thing, you might have a considerable amount of swelling right after treatment. Keeping your head elevated will help the swelling go down more quickly. You’ll also want to take it easy right after the injections. It’s usually a good idea to skip working out or any other exercise for at least a day afterwards. You  might also want to avoid drinking alcohol and taking certain medications and certain supplements, unless your surgeon tells you otherwise.

How much you want to do, and when, after treatment, depends on your preference. Some patients do go back to work right away, swelling and all. Others take a day or two off to let the swelling go down and so that they feel their best before going back to work.

What Other Options Restore Facial Volume?

If you’re losing volume from your cheek area, is Voluma your only option? No, there are a few other ways to enhance that area. These other methods are longer lasting, but also require more of a commitment up front.

For example, if you want to permanently add volume to the cheek area, you might choose to have cheek implants or augmentation. Cheek implants can be made out of a variety of materials and come in a number of different shapes and sizes, depending on your goals.

Inserting the implants is a surgical procedure, so you will have to take a few days off from work to recover afterwards. Usually, the incisions needed to insert the implants are made inside the mouth so that any scarring from the procedure isn’t visible.

Things to Consider Before Getting Voluma

Along with making sure you understand what’s involved with the injection process and what your results will be like, it’s important to consider the surgeon who’s going to perform the injections carefully. Always choose a board certified facial plastic surgeon who has training and experience performing Voluma injections.

You can review before and after photos of previous patients to see if the work the surgeon does lines up with your expectations. Ask the surgeon about his training and experience, too.

Dr. Kyle Choe is a board certified facial plastic surgeon with a practice in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Dr. Choe specializes in procedures that treat the signs of aging on the face, including non-surgical options such as Juvederm Voluma. To learn more Voluma and your options for restoring lost facial volume, call 757.389.5850 to schedule a consultation with Dr. Choe today.