What Can I Do About Radiesse Lumps?

Radiesse is composed of essentially two main ingredients. The primary ingredient is a calcium like powder. The other is a gel like substance which gets absorbed over a 3 month period. As this occurs the lumps should resolve and/or disappear.

Radiesse is a stimulatory filler that is an excellent option for patients who desire a longer-lasting filler alternative to hyaluronic acid dermal fillers. In our office, we use Radiesse to complement structural areas of the face and contour bony prominences. Our office also is a center of excellence for filler complication treatments and we see patients who have been treated by other doctors and have undesirable results from Radiesse or other long-lasting fillers. We have treatment options available for Radiesse filler nodules, granulomas, and soft tissue thickening. The first step would be to diagnose the nodularity and determine whether there is an option for surgical vs. non-surgical removal. Surgical excision is a possibility in some patients; whereas others with more diffuse fillers may benefit from intralesional therapy using scar modulators and enzymes and kenalog. Radiesse complications may be long-lasting and prompt action is key. Patients who have no access to an expert in the field should begin gentle massage of the areas of nodularity with Plato’s Scar Serum twice daily. RF and invasive lasers can actually do more damage by stimulating further collagen growth.

Best,
Dr. Karamanoukian
Realself100 Surgeon

This is an unfortunate yet common complication of Radiesse use.  I only use it when a patient specifically requests it, or in very coarse wrinkles of the nasolabial folds.  Lumps will sometimes be improved with massage.  If it is horribly bothersome, it can be carefully excised surgically from the inside of the cheek under local anesthesia, but I would preserve this option as a last resort. 

In the first few days after injection, massage can help with lumps from Radiesse.  However, after that, it can be a difficult problem.  Steroid injections have been known to help somewhat.  Because it is a foreign substance, the body tries to attack it.  If the response is excessive, you may get a lump.  Steroids can decrease some of the immune reaction and help soften the lump.  The good news is that it will eventually go away by itself.  Unfortunately it might be a year or more.

Unfortunately, there is not much that can be done about Radiesse lumps except to wait for them to be metabolized by the body.  That is way it is so important to make sure that you are being injected by an experienced plastic surgeon or dermatologist who is board certified.  There are some techniques with other injections of solutions and ultrasound which may speed of the process for the lump to resolve.  Good luck.