Sculptra is a popular and effective procedure in La Jolla and San Diego. Approved by the FDA for facial volume deficiency and wrinkles, Sculptra is a unique, one-of-a-kind injectable product that stimulates natural collagen production. When prepared for injection, Sculptra is a bio-degradable, highly diluted mixture of powdered poly-l-lactic acid, the same material as dissolvable sutures and sterile water. When injected into the skin, the response by the body is collagen stimulation.
The final effect is a restoration of lost facial volume due to aging or supplementation to genetic volume deficiency. The “side effect” is a reduction of facial wrinkles and folds. Effects are proven to last at minimum two years, with most patients appreciating much longer improvements as the effects are actual collagen increases and not solely product, as is the case for most other filler products, which typically last 6 to 9 months.
Sculptra has been used cosmetically outside the U.S. since 1999 and is a very popular procedure in Europe and Canada. In 2004 Sculptra was FDA-approved for use in volume restoration from fat loss (facial lipoatrophy) for HIV patients. In July of 2009, the FDA approved Sculptra for the cosmetic indications of volume deficiency and facial wrinkles.
How Aging Of The Face Occurs
Facial aging is often seen beginning even in younger years as the collagen supply in the body slows down. Our bodies have a natural cycle of collagen synthesis and collagen breakdown. As the production cycle slows, the breakdown cycle does not. This is one of the primary reasons women, even as young as those of you in your 30s, begin to see yourselves as looking tired and less energetic.
As age advances, collagen production slows even more – except now the body begins to experience bone loss along with that collagen slow down. This triple combination loss of support tissue – bone, muscle, and collagen – translates into visible volume loss, sagging, and sometimes a profound loss of facial balance. (Stanford University Study Bone Loss Effect on Appearance)
It is easy to guess the age of a relatively healthy person simply by viewing the shape of the face. In women, the evidence of aging is in the rectangular heavy shape of the lower face and the loss of the cheek projection. Also, in many, a temple depression accentuates the heaviness and shape change with more attention brought to the lower face – with the attendant jowling, loss of chin definition, and loss of proportion.
Bone support decreases with an increase in the distance between the end of the nose and the top of the lip. The lengthier the upper lip area, the more aged the look. Sculptra volume restoration through collagen stimulation is the only product that can be used in all areas to provide an overall “lift” effect and youthful restoration of volume and proportion. Although we cannot restore inevitable bone loss, the effects can be visually reversed with selective location volume restoration.