What Does Restylane Do? How Is It Different From Botox?

While Botox has taken the cosmetic surgery world by storm over the last few years, there are other wonderful and helpful products that are available as well. One of these is Restylane. Restylane is often incorrectly mentioned along with Botox, as if it is a comparable product.

So what is Restylane and what can it do for you?

What Is Restylane?

To begin with, let’s go over what Restylane is. Restylane is a dermal filler, meaning it is a substance that is injected underneath your skin to fill in a space. Like other fillers, Restylane is made up of hyaluronic acid. Hyaluronic acid is a substance that naturally occurs within your skin.

What makes Restylane different than other dermal fillers is that it is not made using animal products. This helps reduce the risk of any adverse reaction while also being accessible to people who prefer to have animal-free products. Instead, Restylane is made with natural fermentation biotechnologically in a safe, sterile environment.

Since it is more hypoallergenic than other cosmetic procedures, you do not need any allergy testing prior to having the procedure performed.

Restylane vs. Botox

Restylane and Botox are completely different substances. While they might have some overlap in purpose, they are not interchangeable. Where Restylane is made with hyaluronic acid, Botox uses a neurotoxin to disrupt communication between your brain and your muscles. Botox is used to prevent and reverse wrinkles. Restylane can also help with wrinkles, but it does this by filling in the spaces underneath wrinkles.

Both forms of treatment are done using small injections to pinpoint the areas that you are most concerned with. Ultimately, they are not the same type of product, though both are outpatient procedures and can be performed safely and quickly without much in the way of recovery time. Fillers are more versatile than Botox and have more cosmetic uses than preventing wrinkles.

Restylane’s Uses

Restylane has a lot of different uses when it comes to cosmetic procedures. It is injected in difference layers of skin to help increase the volume of the skin underneath. Some of the common uses include:

• Lip augmentation
• Nose correction
• Sunken cheeks
• Lines between the eyes
• Lines around the mouth
• Any deep wrinkles

The amount of Restylane that you need is determined case by case and will be decided with Dr. Pirani. He will look at your concerns and see what needs to be done to address them.

After The Injections

One of the biggest differences between Restylane and Botox is that with the filler, you will see results right away. With Botox, your body needs to relax the muscles for a couple of weeks before you will see a reduction in the amount of wrinkles that you have. With Restylane, the filler will immediately fill in the gaps. Unfortunately, there is a risk of some other temporary and minor side effects. These include:

• Bruising
• Redness
• Swelling
• Discomfort

The amount of bruising and swelling that you will have is dependent on your body, so you will need to be prepared if you are worried about people knowing or commenting on your side effects.

Duration of Restylane

Much like Botox, Restylane is not a permanent solution to your cosmetic concerns. With Botox, your body gradually metabolizes the neurotoxin, allowing the muscles that were giving relief to go back to work. When this happens, you will need to have the Botox re-injected to continue with the same results.

Restylane works the same way. Since hyaluronic acid is naturally occurring within your skin, eventually your body is going to metabolize it the same way that it does the hyaluronic acid within your body. In order to maintain the full appearance, you will need to get the procedure done again.

How Do I Get Started?

In order to get started with Restylane, you will need to first come in for a consultation appointment with Dr. Pirani. Together, you will be able to address your needs as a patient and make sure that Restylane is the right solution for your skincare concerns. If you were hoping for a facial transformation and want to start with something small, give Dr. Pirani a call to see how he can help.