For nearly five years, American dermatologists have waited for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to approve Voluma XC, a hyaluronic acid that adds volume to the cheek area. Although you may not realize it, hyaluronic acid is a natural sugar produced by your body. If you weigh 150 pounds, it’s likely that you have about 15 grams of hyaluronic acid in your body.
The drug is already being used in over 60 other countries. In fact, these kinds of facial fillers were approved for usage in Europe as early as 2005. By 2012, more than 520,000 syringes of the filler had been sold to dermatologists. Initially developed in the 1930s by Karl Meyer, the gel filler works with the water in your body to add more fullness or volume to your facial area, particularly your cheeks.
In 2012 alone, Americans underwent 14.6 cosmetic procedures, including non-surgical procedures such as liquid facelifts, according to the FDA. Clearly, most people, perhaps no one, wants to look or feel “old”. Changes to your skin are one of the earliest signs that your body is aging. Loose skin, warts, darkening skin and lose of volume are a few signs that your skin is beginning to go through the aging process.
Loss of volume in your cheeks causes your cheekbone area to look sunken, hollow. It also causes your skin to sag, both of which can make you look years older than you actually are. Some dermatologists use Voluma with other fillers, such as Restylane. For example, one might use dermal fillers and/or Botox to fill and tighten the skin in your cheek area, making you glow with a more youthful appearance.
Furthermore, unlike other gel fillers used in non-invasive facelifts, Voluma gel fillers can last for two years, while other gel fillers (think Restylane/Perlane) need to be replenished every 9 to 12 months. One of the ingredients contained in Voluma is lidocaine, a local anesthetic. Lidocaine’s pain numbing effects aid dermatologists as they treat your aging skin. Because of the gel’s lidocaine ingredient, Voluma can be injected at deep levels, directly on top of your cheek bones, relatively pain-free.
Prior to approving the gel fillers for public usage, clinical trials were conducted in the United States and Canada. The main purpose of the trials was to measure the safety of Voluma. Adults who participated in the clinical trials showed moderate to severe facial aging prior to receiving any treatments. However, not all study participants received treatments. Only one set of the adults were injected with Voluma gel fillers. Another set of clinical trial participants received no fillers.
Adults who received injections were asked to keep diaries, recording side effects they experienced post-injections. Both sets of adults were examined six months later, then again after two years had expired. Common side effects associated with Voluma included swelling, tenderness and firmness. These side effects are similar to those experienced when receiving other instant facelifts.
In addition to giving adults a more youthful appearance, hyaluronic acid is also used to treat medical conditions like osteoarthritis and xerosis. It has also been used to reduce inflammation and to treat wounds, helping to speed up the healing process. Some dermatologists use Voluma for liquid facelifts while others categorize the filler more predominantly as a wrinkle eraser.
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