Is It Better to Have Fillers Injected with a Microcannula?

Microcannulas are without a doubt the future of injectable fillers.  I started using the microcannula several years ago and now perform over 95% of all of my facial injections with microcannulas.  I can perform traditional treatment areas such as nasolabial folds, cheeks, melomental troughs (marionette lines), lips, and prejowl sulci. I have also successfully used the microcannula for nasal augmentation ("liquid rhinoplasty"), temple injections, rejuvenation of the hands, and scar treatment.  The increased safety, patient comfort, and accuracy of using the microcannula for injectable fillers will soon make it the standard of care.

Hi @MakenzieR. There are many advantages of using a microcannula. Microcannulas decrease the risk of vascular occlusion and decreases the chances of bruising and swelling.

Best of luck,

Dr. Nima

Hi there!
The Microcannulae is a true necessity to aesthetics practice. With reduced risk of bruising / complications, it is far safer when working in sensitive regions of the face. It is most importantly face more comfortable for my clients! 
I predominantly use this for the majority of my volumisation / rejuvenation of the mid-lower face and tear troughs with lovely natural looking results.
Ensure your practitioner has suitable microcannulae training! 
Best wishes, 
Dr Rupert 

Injecting fillers of all types with microcannulas has several distinct advantages;1.  Less bruising, swelling and trauma to the tissues2.  Decreased risk of intraarterial injection which can lead to devastating consequences3.  More precise placement of filler and smoother applicationI prefer SoftFil cannulas.

Microcannula injections help to reduce the rate of recovery by minimizing trauma, so you have less swelling, bruising and discomfort. Large areas can be treated faster as well (although it's not recommended for fine lines). It's important that an experienced injector administers the procedure however.

The blunt cannula allows blood vessels to be ‘pushed aside’ as the cannula traverses the tissue under the skin instead of piercing the blood vessels as with traditional needles used by most practitioners. This has truly decreased bruising in my practice by 90% especially when using filler under eyes or in the lips. Only a few practitioners use cannulas.In addition, the blunt cannula technique has allowed me to use the traditional fillers for wrinkles in the nose as part of his nonsurgical rhinoplasty that is also performed only by a few. The fear of using fillers around the eyes and in the nose has always centered around penetrating vessels with the filler material and ‘clogging’ the vessel causing a lack of blood flow to the area that can cause skin death or even blindness. Though this can still happen, gentle movement of a blunt cannula through the tissue in these areas minimize such concerns.

Over the past 6 months, I have been utilizing microcannulas for over 90% of my facial injections with Juvederm and Restylane.  I do believe that it allows for a more gentler injection with minimal to no bruising and very nice precision.  There are still times when I prefer to inject with a needle especially for a non surgical rhinoplasty.  Some of the areas that I will utilize a microcannula include the eyes (tear troughs), the temples, nasolabial folds and lips.  I inject a few access sites with a little local anesthesia and the rest is pretty pain free.

Microcannulas are a great upgrade in injecting dermal fillers. To name a few of the benefits


Less bruising - the smooth tip doesn't cut blood vessels

Less pain - virtually none in most cases. A small entry port is made with a sharp needle first and lidocaine is injected to numb the area

Less risk - certain areas contain fragile nerves and a smooth tip leaves them undisturbed

Fewer needle sticks - we can treat an area with one or two entry points instead of 6 or 10
 


Cannulas aren't used for everything (not used for muscle relaxers like Dysport of Botox or Xeomin)  But patients love the difference.

Not all doctors have moved over to cannulas and some may not do so at all - or may do so on a limited basis.

 

 

Microcannulas might be slightly better in terms of lower likelihood of bruising, and there is a trend towards using them more frequently. But this is a like "splitting hairs", not something to perseverate over.

Fillers can be injected into the face with either a sharp needle or a blunt cannula.  When blood vessels are injured during an injection, blood leaks into the surrounding tissue and causes a bruise.  Unfortunately, injectors cannot know the precise location of blood vessels and inevitably will come across them during an injection.  Since the cannula is blunt at the tip, when it comes near a blood vessel, it has a greater chance of pushing the blood vessel to the side (preventing an injury to the blood vessel and a bruise).  On the other hand, a sharp needle near a blood vessel has a greater chance of injuring it and causing a bruise.  I believe a cannula has a decreased chance of a bruise during injections of facial of fillers.

 

Not all doctors use the cannula.  It is based on the preference of the doctor.  I use them on all of my fillers except Sculptra.

 

I hope this helps!