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How much will it cost? The fee for collagen injections can be located in the suggested fees . The fee quoted is for a single, one-milliliter syringe. Please call my office for an accurate price quote or make an appointment for a personal consultation to discuss your specific concerns. My suggested quotes include professional fees, anesthesia fees, operating room costs, equipment use fees, collagen, costs, house calls, before care and after care. They do not include home care products, hospitalization costs, prescriptions, home nursing care, preoperative history and physical examination, laboratory costs, or pathology fees. If you compare prices, make sure that you consider all these costs. I require complete payment two weeks prior to collagen injections. What can I do about my aging face? The combination of aging and sun damage leads to skin sagging and wrinkling. This sagging makes coarse wrinkles (forehead, sides of the mouth, and cheeks) more prominent. Collagen injections freshen the face by reducing the facial lines. Will this improve acne and acne scarring? Smoothing of acne scarring can be achieved with collagen injections. The injections are placed to elevate depressed scars. How is this different from fat graft injections? Fat graft injections use your own fat to smooth facial lines. Since some of this fat remains after one year, this can lead to long term improvement particularly if done more than once. Collagen injections on the other hand use processed foreign collagen that is always is absorbed within six months. What are the risks of collagen injections? There are risks with all cosmetic injections. Skin swelling, skin loss, irritation, redness, viral infections, visible white bumps in the skin, allergic reactions, and changes in skin color, although uncommon, can occur. Fortunately, most problems are correctable with additional injections or simply resolve with time as the collagen is naturally absorbed. The most serious problem associated with collagen injections is allergic reactions. Skin testing four to six weeks prior to injections reduces this risk. You must understand your risk of complications completely before you choose to have collagen injections. Can I have collagen injections after taking Acutane? Acutane reduces the healing capacity of the skin. I recommend that you wait a full two years after stopping Acutane. Even after discontinuation, there remains a small increased risk of slow or poor healing after collagen injections. Will cold sores affect the results of injections? Cold sores can affect the treated areas after collagen injections. This prolongs skin redness with possible slow healing and scarring. To reduce this risk collagen injections cannot be done if there are active cold sores on the lips, face, or mouth. I have heard so many bad things on television, is it safe to have collagen injections? There are always risks with collagen injections. I believe that collagen injections can be done safely with a high degree of patient satisfaction. Serious problems are usually related to allergic reactions. Most poor results resolve as the collagen is absorbed. What can you tell me about this new technique that I saw on television? Everyone in America wants the latest in medical care. This is not always the best medical care. At times media presentations will leave out critical information about potential complications, quality of result, and FDA regulation. I am open minded when it comes to new technology but I would rather not use my patients to try out the newest techniques. Recent advances in filler materials include Gore-Tex grafts, fat graft injections, processed collagen from your own body, processed cadaver collagen, and silicone implants. I believe that fat graft injections, processed collagen from your own body, and Gore-Tex implants are reasonable alternate choices. For general health reasons, I recommend that all my patients stop smoking. It is clear that smoking increases your risk for developing all sorts of cancers. Breathing problems like emphysema and circulatory problems including heart attacks, are also linked to smoking. Smoking also reduces blood flow that can result in poor skin response to collagen injections. It is always best to stop smoking. There are other choices when it comes to collagen injections. These include facial rejuvenation surgery (laser resurfacing, facelift, forehead lift, and eyelid surgery), fat graft injections, dermabrasion, chemical peels, advanced skin care, Gore-Tex implants, processed collagen from your own body, acceptance of a deformity, and changes in makeup. Always understand all your options before having collagen injections. What additional procedures can I consider that will enhance the result? Injections can be combined with other treatments to yield dramatic and complimentary results. Collagen injections are frequently combined with advanced skin care, eyelash and/or eyebrow tinting, home treatments, and permanent makeup to enhance the overall result. They can also be combined with any facial cosmetic surgery. How long after collagen injections can I have cosmetic facial surgery? Six months must pass before injection sites can be treated with cosmetic facial surgery. It takes this amount of time to allow the natural inflammation to resolve. Am I a good candidate for collagen injections? This is a question that can only be answered after a personal consultation. Collagen injections are suggested to patients with prominent coarse lines and/or acne scarring of the face. There are other things to consider as well including psychiatric conditions, life stress, medical illness, obesity, and motivation. You should be a healthy nonsmoker, within twenty pounds of your ideal weight. Major life stresses (i.e. grieving a death and divorce) must be absent in your life. The ideal candidate is motivated by internal desires to look better. How many times can I have collagen injections done? Collagen injections can be performed many times. After initial injections a maintenance program is undertaken once every six to nine months thereafter to maintain the youthful freshening. The injections can be continued for a number of years.
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