Sculptra: Rejuvenation for Your Face and Body

Sculptra: Rejuvenation for Your Face and Body

Nothing is more effective at sculpting, contouring, and adding youthful volume to the face than collagen, an essential protein that supports skin cells at the structural level. Collagen keeps our skin, bones, and connective tissues youthful and supple. Over time, thanks to the natural aging process and prolonged exposure to the sunlight and environmental toxins, our bodies gradually begin to produce less collagen. Once collagen production begins to diminish, we begin to see lines and wrinkles, as well as deep folds, lax and sagging skin, and loss of contouring and volume in areas such as the cheekbones and buttocks.

Dr. Olga Bachilo, a trusted plastic surgeon specializing in surgical and non-surgical facial and body contouring at Glamour Plastic Surgery and Med Spa, uses Sculptra on her Houston area patients to restore lost volume, sculpt and improve facial contour, and trigger the production of collagen in patients who are seeing signs of collagen loss. But the magic of Sculptra also extends beyond the face. Read on to see how Dr. Bachilo achieves total facial and body contouring with Sculptra in both male and female patients.

What is the active ingredient in Sculptra?

Sculptra is an injectable gel formula made from an absorbable, biocompatible synthetic material known as poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA). Sculptra is FDA-approved for the purpose of boosting collagen production and helping to fortify the skin’s internal structure while increasing volume and enhancing contour.

Over a series of treatments, Sculptra can restore lost volume, increase fullness in hollows and indentations, and smooth out wrinkles, lines, and folds, gradually tightening and firming the skin over several months. The formula’s specialized PLLA microspheres trigger the body’s natural production of collagen, gradually producing a smoother, firmer, and more youthful appearance over time.

Thanks to its unique consistency, Sculptra is effective at lifting and tightening the skin, while also filling in hollows and indentations in the face, improving facial contour and restoring youthful volume. Sculptra may be used as a stand-alone treatment or combined with other dermal fillers, as well as procedures such as fat transfer injections, facial peels, laser treatments, or microneedling and radiofrequency treatments to produce comprehensive improvements in skin firmness, reversing and preventing the visible signs of aging.

Sculptra injections work best when administered by an experienced professional such as Dr. Bachilo, in order to ensure natural-looking results and avoid the danger of overdoing it or of injecting the gel into the wrong areas of the face. It is also essential that you provide use the proper dilution, to avoid the possibility of lumps or bumps that may occur if the treatment is administered incorrectly.

What happens during a Sculptra treatment?

We will ensure your absolute comfort by providing topical analgesics to diminish any potential discomfort from the injections. Once your skin has been properly numbed and cleansed, Dr. Bachilo will inject a small amount of Sculptra gel into treatment areas using in a curved linear pattern to provide structural support to the inner layers of skin. Once the injections are delivered, the treatment area is massaged gently to ensure a smooth finish.

Treatment will vary depending on what area of the face or body is to be treated. To treat larger areas such as the arms or chest, where the skin is typically thinner, Dr. Bachilo will employ a blunt-tipped cannula instead of a needle to diminish the likelihood of bruising.

Sculptra may be combined with dermal fillers such as Bellafill and a specialized technique known as subcision, which smooths out atrophic, indented acne scars by dissolving the scar tissue as well as the bands in the skin that pull the skin inward and perpetuate the indentation, producing a smoother surface texture as well as firmer skin.

How can Dr. Bachilo help me look younger with Sculptra?

Depending on your condition and skin type, Dr. Bachilo may opt to combine Sculptra injections with dermal fillers, laser treatments, microneedling, and/or radiofrequency (RF) treatments with or without Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) injections to “activate” the Sculptra treatment and trigger production of collagen, producing a comprehensive non-surgical “lift.”

To achieve facial rejuvenation, Dr. Bachilo focuses on areas in which individuals typically experience a loss of volume and contour as a result of the aging process, such as the temples, cheeks, nasolabial folds, chin, and jawline. To sculpt, contour, tighten, and enhance volume in these areas, Dr. Bachilo may combine Sculptra with other fillers such as Bellafill, Radiesse, Restylane, and Voluma, and/or fat transfer injections. In cases where a more dramatic loss of volume has occurred, surgical implants may also be inserted. Sculptra is an ideal enhancement for patients using any type of dermal fillers, as it helps to build a collagen-rich framework beneath the skin’s surface that supports firm, healthy skin.

While Sculptra is most often used for facial rejuvenation, Dr. Bachilo also uses it to rejuvenate various other areas of the body, such as the arms, buttocks, thighs, and knees.

The Non-surgical Sculptra Butt-Lift

The Sculptra non-surgical butt-lift produces a fuller, firmer, and rounder derrière in both male and female patients, providing a minimally invasive solution with no downtime that serves as an alternative to surgical implants or the more invasive fat transfer. In cases where a more comprehensive lift is desired, Sculptra may be combined with one or more of these procedures.

In many cases, Sculptra may be combined with RF treatments that help activate the formula once injected, while also triggering collagen production. Dr. Bachilo may also opt to complement Sculptra injections with semi-permanent filler injections such as Bellafill, or Renuva synthetic fat transfer injections to improve such conditions as uneven texture, indentations, cellulite, and dimples, as well as to achieve maximum definition and improve the overall shape and size of the buttocks.

It may take several treatments with Sculptra to achieve the ideal improvement, and you’ll need two to three follow-up treatments yearly to maintain optimal results.

Banish Cellulite with Sculptra

While Dr. Bachilo most often treats cellulite with Cellfina, a minimally invasive treatment that lifts the fibrous bands beneath the skin’s surface to smoothen out the texture of the skin and is considered the gold standard for treating cellulite, Cellfina may also be combined with Sculptra to trigger collagen production and enhance firming and tightening of the skin. In some cases, fat transfer, laser treatments, and shockwave therapy may be used to achieve the most comprehensive results.

Sculptra for Skin Tightening

While there are many surgical and non-surgical procedures that treat lax, sagging skin, Dr. Bachilo will evaluate your specific condition and aesthetic goals to recommend the most effective combination of treatments for you. She may opt to include Sculptra as a key component in skin tightening treatments due to its long-term plumping effects and to provide enhanced and diminish the appearance of lines and wrinkles, as well as its ability to stimulate collagen production.

Dramatic improvements are achieved by combining Sculptra with other skin tightening treatments such as RF therapy, microneedling, and laser treatments.

Smooth out your thighs and knees with Sculptra

In patients with unsightly crepey skin around the knees and thighs, Sculptra may be used to tighten loose, sagging skin and diminish the appearance of baggy wrinkles around the knees. Sculptra’s ability to stimulates collagen production produces gradual improvements as the skin tightens over time. Dr. Bachilo may also combine Sculptra with other treatments to achieve maximum improvement.

What should I expect after a Sculptra treatment?

While some patients may experience redness, swelling, bruising, and/or soreness in the treatment area for several days following treatment, most are able to resume normal activities immediately after their treatment.

Results become visible gradually over time as collagen builds slowly during a period of several months. In most patients, the maximum improvements become visible about 3 to 6 months after the treatment is administered as increased production of collagen rebuilds the skin from within.

Sculptra results may last as long as 2 to 3 years, but Dr. Bachilo recommends follow-up treatments at least once or twice yearly to maintain optimal results.

Who is a good candidate for Sculptra?

Sculptra is made from a safe material that is both biodegradable and biocompatible. It is effective for use on patients with all skin types, so most healthy adults make good candidates for this treatment. Sculptra produces especially effective results in patients with darker skin tones, as darker skin normally produces more collagen. Sculptra is also ideal for candidates that go through dermal fillers rapidly or those who have not achieved sufficient improvements with dermal fillers alone. It is also great for individuals who exercise rigorously and maintain a high-protein, low-carb diet.

If you’d like to learn more about how Sculptra can take years off your appearance by imparting firmer, tighter, smoother skin, contact Glamour Plastic Surgery and Med Spa and schedule an appointment with Dr. Olga Bachilo, a renowned physician treating patients in the greater Houston, Katy, and Sugar Land area of Texas.