Thomas J. Lee, MD

Thank you for your question.  Unfortunately we have not found the holy grail that makes our faces retain their youthfulness forever.  Our face is subject to volume loss as we age and/or lose weight.  Hollowing of the temples comes from loss of muscle mass and fat over time.  Radiesse restores some of that volume in the short run as a filler, and it also acts as a biostimulant that tells your body to make more collagen which also restores some volume.  Other biostimulants include Sculptra and Bellafill.  These last much longer than hyaluronic acid type fillers.  

Thank you for your question.  If you have concerns with your appearance after the swelling goes down (can take 1-2 weeks), you should get re-evaluated by your injector.  This is especially important if there is persistent pain, redness, or swelling, since those are indicators for an infection that may need further treatment.  

Thank you for your question.  Changes to your face can be caused by many different factors, including injections with fillers.  Things like weight change, aging, sun damage, water retention, illness, allergies, and more can take you away from your desired look.  In general, since Radiesse is a calcium hydroxylapatite filler, it persists longer than the hyaluronic acid type fillers, with approximate retention of of 9 months to 2 years based on the literature.  These are just averages, and some patients may have experiences outside of this range.  It would be helpful to get re-evaluated to discuss your concerns on how best to move forward.  

Thank you for your question.  There are no known contraindications with Zyrtec and Radiesse, so it should be safe to take Zyrtec after you have had a treatment using Radiesse.  

Thank you for your question and photo. It can be challenging to fix problems with Radiesse, since it is a calcium hydroxylapatite filler and not a hyaluronic acid filler that can be dissolved easily.  Some of the options include steroid injections (which carry their own risk), surgical removal, mechanical disruption, and softening the contour abnormality with additional filler near the affected area.