Safe to Have Ulthera if You Have Had Sculptra, Restylane or Juvederm?

Hi,

There are no studies looking at the effects of fillers in combination with Ultherapy. However, there have been reports that when Ulthera has been used over areas that have been treated with fillers, the fillers have been shown to dissolve. This usually occurs if the filler was injected within 2 months prior to the Ulthera treament, but there have been reports of this occurring with fillers placed as long as 6 months prior.

With respect to Sculptra and Ultherapy, there is some belief that there may be a synergistic effect with combining the two, with a more robust collagen production. Again, there are no studies on the matter.

At this point, I would recommend limiting the Ultherapy treatments to areas of the face where there are no fillers. Hope this helps!

Dr.Sunder

There may be ongoing data collection by Ulthera investigating any effect that Ultherapy may have on fillers, but results have not been published at this time.  The two questions would be:

1. Would Ultherapy after fillers, damage the fillers and create an undesired effect?

2. Would the energy of the Ultherapy hasten the resolution of the filler thereby decreasing the duration of their effect?

There has been no clinical evidence of such that I've been aware from my colleagues to-date.

Certainly, Ultherapy can be done and Sculptra, Perlane, Restylane, Juvederm and Radiesse can be injected immediately after, even the same day, without being concerned about the two questions posed above.

It is best to try and stay away from areas with fillers as ultherapy can potentially break them down and lead to loss of volume. most common areas for fillers are around the mouth and nasolabial folds, which are not in regions treated with ulthera - so most shouldn't have any issues. In the cheeks though this might happen and patients are counseled about this.

No studies have been done to demonstrate the safety of using fillers and ulthera. Your facial plastic surgeon or dermatologist needs to evaluate your anatomy and history to better determine your candidacy.

The effects of Ulthera when applied directly on top of fillers such as Restylane or Juvederm are not completely known but there isn't any reason to believe that adjacent areas could not be done. For example, if fillers are placed in the nasolabial lines (the furrows extending downward from the sides of the nose towards the corners of the mouth) the cheeks could still be done with Ulthera for a nice combined effect.

Ultherapy can be done in patients who have had volume fillers.Typically Ultherapy is not administered over areas where fillers have been used. There are no documented long term side effects from Ultherapy.Ultherapy has advantages as it uses imaging to deliver targeted high intensity 'focused' ultrasound.The results of skin tightening will be most apparent at 6 months.We have performed hundreds of Ultherapy procedures in our Williamsville, NY office.

Ultherapy is an ultrasound based procedure that focuses sound energy at 3-4.5 mm below the skin surface.  This is the same depth that dermal fillers are generally placed.  The ultrasound energy will definitely effect the filler but as others have alluded to, the exact interaction has not been studied.  At this time, I would not recommend using Ulthera over the same area that has had a dermal filler.