What can be done about the swelling & bruises from Juvederm?

Thank you for your question. Bruising and swelling are common side effects of lip injections. Avoiding alcohol, ASA and ibuprofen prior to injection can be helpful. Your wife can take arnica montana tablets, apply traumeel cream, sleep with her head slightly elevated and ice for 10 mins several times a day. If any further concerns direct them to the injector.Best,

This is a very common side effect from needle injection of fillers.  In the short term you can use oral arnika forte, topical arnica, and icing.  Some people use oral vitamin c and k, as well.  Laser treatment with pulsed dye or excel V laser work very well to clear this up rapidly.  I suggest speaking to your injecting physician if you are concerned.  Best, Dr. Emer.

Hi Lemmera. We have a fairly standard program for managing swelling and bruising after injections.It includes:Gentle IcingAntihistamine like Benadryl or ClaritinMotrin or IbuprofinWe also have two other suggestions/options.  The first is that we offer our patients a pre-injection handout that lets them know what NOT to do before injections (alcohol, aspirin and fish oil supplements are three culprits for bruising).  We also have a post treatment regimen which includes long pulsed yag or pulsed dye laser treatments to reverse the bruising more quickly than it would on it's own.  

Bruising and swelling is typical post lip injection. Prior to treatment, blood thinners such as aspirin should be avoided (or at least discussed with your injector). Post treatment, patients may benefit from arnica and icing. Consult with your wife's injector as he or she knows the scope of the treatment and the specifics about your wife.  Injection technique may minimize bruising and swelling. So, ensure that you choose and experienced and expert physician injector.

There are many herbals and vitamins with anticoagulant properties
that may increase both the risk of bleeding during a procedure as well as the annoying bruising
that follows afterwards; oftentimes, these are overlooked.   Moving forward, please be advised that alcohol, oral vitamin E, nonsteroidal
anti-inflammatory drugs ("NSAIDs" e.g. ibuprofen), in addition to a number of
alternative therapies, including garlic, gingko,
ginger, ginseng, feverfew, fish oil and green tea, may promote bleeding and bruising.
This is particularly important prior to
injection of the thin skin of the eyelids and lips. Other herbals that may promote bleeding including: bilberry,
black current, bladderwrack, cayenne fruit, celery plant, da huang, danshen,
devil’s claw, dong quai, evening primrose seed oil, German chamomile, horse
chestnut, kava kava root, licorice, papaya, poplar, sweet closer, tamarind, and
willow bark.

Bruising and swelling is a side effect of all injectable products, and we all hate when our patients have exaggerated swelling or exaggerated bruising. There are some things you should have done before the injections to minimize the potential (usually reviewed during the consultation) and post-injections; hopefully your provider gave you specifics on how to take care of the treated area.Ice is the standard for swelling, and using ice often may make the area better faster than doing nothing. For bruising, you can apply arnica or take arnica supplements — some say this works well but others are not too keen on it. What we as skilled injectors want to know: is there any pain? If so, this needs to be evaluated by the provider pretty quickly to make sure nothing else is going on, like the beginning of an infection.For us, we like using the pulsed dye laser or the intense pulsed light source for people with significant bruising. It really has shown to make a difference if performed early and most bruises can be treated successfully in this manner. We hope that the injector knows how to handle these concerns; board-certified dermatologists and plastic surgeons are skilled in this, and I would suggest checking with one of them.

Swelling and bruising are common side effects after lip injections, especially within the first 24 to 48 hours, and they will subside. Icing is great. Elevated sleeping the first night is also recommended to reduce any swelling in the face and lips. Bruising can also be minimized by not consuming certain ingredients that cause bruising such as green tea, ginger, and over-the-counter supplements like Omega‑3 pills.The lips generally take about 2 weeks to settle with the new product in them.