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At first glance, BOTOX® and Dysport®, and Hyaluronic Acid dermal fillers seem the same – they each help restore a youthful appearance to your skin. Each are popular too, with skincare professionals performing more than 2.6 million dermal filler injections and 7.4 million injections of BOTOX® in 2018, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.
They are each minimally invasive, so they do not require surgery. All procedures are best performed in a doctor’s office, by a skilled, trained licensed professional will provide great results. This is where the similarities end, though, and the differences between dermal fillers, and BOTOX® and Dysport® begin.
About BOTOX® and Dysport®
BOTOX® and Dysport®
BOTOX® and Dysport® reduce the appearance of lines and wrinkles by freezing the muscles responsible for making certain facial expressions. When you smile, frown, furrow your brow, or make other facial expressions, your muscles pull your skin in various directions; your facial muscles can even crease your skin around your mouth when you smile and between your eyebrows when you frown. Younger skin is elastic and springs right back into place; whereas older skin tends to develop fine lines and wrinkles where skin creases.
BOTOX® and Dysport® treatments are temporary, and both require regular treatments to maintain results; however, the formulaic differences between BOTOX® and Dysport® may mean that you respond better to one or the other. Due to dosage differences, one product may be more affordable than the other, and Dysport® is more diffuse, which means it’s better suited for treating larger areas. BOTOX®, on the other hand, is ideal for precise application.
Hyaluronic Acid Dermal fillers
Dermal fillers, by comparison, contain substances that add fullness to areas of skin that have thinned due to aging. Youthful skin is plump, soft, and smooth. As we age though, our skin gets thinner, loses volume, and loses moisture. This thinning is common in the lips, cheeks, and around the mouth.
Injected just below the surface of the skin, dermal fillers add volume and fullness to plump up thinning lips, enhance or fill in shallow areas of the face, or erase the shadow or wrinkles under the eyes caused by sagging lower eyelids. Dermal fillers can soften the appearance of static wrinkles, which are those wrinkles that remain visible when your face is at rest. They can also reduce the look of recessed or indented scars.
Key Differences between BOTOX® and Dysport®, and Dermal Fillers
The ingredients in BOTOX® and Dysport® injections freeze select muscles to stop wrinkles and creases caused by facial expressions. Treatment usually focuses on the muscles located in the upper face, such as the forehead and around the eyes.
Dermal fillers use hyaluronic acid and other ingredients to plump or fill in or areas that have lost volume, fullness, and smoothness. These injections treat wrinkles around the mouth, thin lips, and cheek areas that have lost volume and fullness.
BOTOX® and Dysport® results last 3 to 4 months. Depending on which filler is used, the results of dermal fillers can last anywhere from 6 months to 2 years.
For more information about the differences between BOTOX®, Dysport®, and dermal fillers, speak with your skincare professional at Aesthetics at Illinois Eye Center.