If you've been to Sephora lately or even scrolled on TikTok, you're probably well aware that there are tons of new beauty brands hitting the scene, but the lesser-known fact is that injectable brands are flooding the market as well. So, it's not always as simple as just deciding you want to get botulinum toxin injections (such as Botox) or filler. The next step is to weigh your options because as with most things, injectables aren't one size fits all.
When it comes to filler, there are more than a few to choose from, and not only might their ingredients list differ, but the molecular sizes of the ingredients can vary as well, meaning the results won't be identical. There are two principal manufacturers of injectable filler: the publicly traded company Allergan, and Galderma, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Nestlé (yes, like the chocolate). In June 2006, the FDA approved Juvéderm, a family of hyaluronic acid (HA) dermal fillers for long-lasting correction of facial wrinkles and folds. In addition to Allergan and Galderma, companies including Merz Aesthetics and Suneva Medical Inc. have also manufactured dermal fillers to address various facial concerns, such as smoothing wrinkles and adding volume to sunken or depressed areas.
And just because you've heard of one type of filler doesn't necessarily mean it's the best. You should consider factors such as placement, how long you want your results to last, whether or not you want the results to be reversible should you not be satisfied with the results, and FDA approval. These are conversations you should definitely have with your injector, but in the meantime, we tapped two experts to get a general overview of the best types of face fillers. Below, cosmetic dermatologist Marnie Nussbaum, MD, and facial plastic surgeon Jonathan Cabin, MD, share everything they know.
Meet the Expert
I usually plan my filler appointments with my dermatologist around my social schedule. It's not that I really need to look refreshed for a friend's birthday dinner — I work remotely, and it's easier to hide a bruised lip and swollen cheeks on a Zoom call than it is for a romantic date with my partner.
But recently, Los Angeles-based board-certified dermatologist Ava Shamban, MD, told me about a new collection of fillers recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) called Resilient Hyaluronic Acid — a.k.a. RHA — which can provide a more immediately natural look with such little swelling I could schedule it hours before date night. Reader, my interest was piqued.
Meet the experts:
Most fillers are made with hyaluronic acid — a polysaccharide that's naturally occurring in humans that retains moisture— and are FDA-approved for the treatment of static lines and wrinkles (the ones that form when your face is at rest.) Parent company Teoxane's new RHA collection of fillers, which are made of a type of hyaluronic acid that most closely the kind that resembles what naturally occurs in the body, was FDA-approved in 2021 for the treatment of dynamic lines and wrinkles. (These wrinkles happen when you animate, like a frown or smile.)
"If you look at a 3D image of RHA filler, it gels together similarly to native hyaluronic acid," says Dr. Shamban, who worked on the clinical trials for the product's FDA approval.
While New York City-based board-certified plastic surgeon Lara Devgan, MD, says she likes RHA for areas within the mid-face that have a great deal of movement with smiling, facial expressions, eating, and movement, she mentions that there aren't many drawbacks. Still, she stops short of praising it above other injectable fillers.
"I think of hyaluronic acid fillers as cousins of each other. They're all unique in some ways and can be better suited for certain tissue types, anatomic characteristics, or skin depths, but generally speaking they are more similar than they are different," she explains. "That said, in much the same way that an artist might sketch differently with charcoal as he or she does with pencils, there is an art to how to handle each brand of filler. RHA and other modern hyaluronic acid-based fillers are flexible in dynamic areas of the face like the nasolabial folds, so they look natural whether the face is in movement or at rest."