POSTED UNDER Bellafill Reviews
If I Can Save One Person from Getting Bellafill I'll Feel Better
UPDATED FROM sfsutherland
1 year post
All healed up and still no edema! :)
$4,200
So I’m about 4 months out from mini-facelift surgery, which also caused the incidental removal of the Bellafill. Looking ever so much better. I can feel my face again! No more wads of Bellafill in my nasolabial folds and chin!
The edema has not returned and I don’t expect it will.
The edema has not returned and I don’t expect it will.
sfsutherland's provider
UPDATED FROM sfsutherland
1 year post
Bellafill finally gone. And so is the edema.
So, end of story: I ultimately came to the conclusion that the only way to get rid of the Bellafill was to have it surgically removed. I went to 4 dermatologists who were all familiar with and most of them offered Bellafill in their practice. None of them seemed to think that there was any reason not to believe that the Bellafill was causing my ongoing edema. There just wasn't anything they could do about it. One of them put me on a supplement called "WaterEase" that I highly recommend if you have edema issues. It certainly helped some. But after more than a year, the edema never resolved.
I could literally grab a hunk of my face and it was squishy. Ultimately, I consulted 3 plastic surgeons, none of whom were aiming to "remove the Bellafill" especially, but there certainly was some improvement to be expected from a mini-facelift, so I opted for that.
My surgeon told me at that he was going to "try" to scrape a little of the Bellafill out. But he never had to. He said that when he made the incisions to do the mini facelift and lifted the skin, that this gelationous "stuff" just oozed out. He said it was obvious that it was Bellafill.
The day of and the day after the surgery, it was obvious that the edema was gone. My face was so much thinner! I looked like me again!
I was told by my injector that the "medical director" at Suneva said that "Bellfill can't cause edema." I had read a trial that is on Suneva's own website that showed one patient with ongoing edema still after 24 weeks that hadn't resolved. So that's not true. Bellafill can cause edema. And not one medical professional that I saw in the past year had any problem whatsoever accept that Bellafill could have caused my edema.
After my surgery, and the removal of the Bellafill, which was not really by design, but Thank God it "removed itself" the edema is completely resolved. It cost me a LOT of money, but more than that, it cost me over a year of my life--running around to doctors, massaging my face, trying this solution and that solution. It also made me feel self conscious and caused me no end of anxiety.
I'm glad that my story had a happy ending. Obviously, not everyone who gets Bellafill gets ongoing edema that requires surgery to resolve. But I did. And the person in the study on the Bellafill website did. Which means that someone else could too. I don't want that someone else to be you.
The photos I'm posting show me the day before the surgery, and the day after. I'm about 6 weeks out from surgery now, so still healing...in more ways than one.
I could literally grab a hunk of my face and it was squishy. Ultimately, I consulted 3 plastic surgeons, none of whom were aiming to "remove the Bellafill" especially, but there certainly was some improvement to be expected from a mini-facelift, so I opted for that.
My surgeon told me at that he was going to "try" to scrape a little of the Bellafill out. But he never had to. He said that when he made the incisions to do the mini facelift and lifted the skin, that this gelationous "stuff" just oozed out. He said it was obvious that it was Bellafill.
The day of and the day after the surgery, it was obvious that the edema was gone. My face was so much thinner! I looked like me again!
I was told by my injector that the "medical director" at Suneva said that "Bellfill can't cause edema." I had read a trial that is on Suneva's own website that showed one patient with ongoing edema still after 24 weeks that hadn't resolved. So that's not true. Bellafill can cause edema. And not one medical professional that I saw in the past year had any problem whatsoever accept that Bellafill could have caused my edema.
After my surgery, and the removal of the Bellafill, which was not really by design, but Thank God it "removed itself" the edema is completely resolved. It cost me a LOT of money, but more than that, it cost me over a year of my life--running around to doctors, massaging my face, trying this solution and that solution. It also made me feel self conscious and caused me no end of anxiety.
I'm glad that my story had a happy ending. Obviously, not everyone who gets Bellafill gets ongoing edema that requires surgery to resolve. But I did. And the person in the study on the Bellafill website did. Which means that someone else could too. I don't want that someone else to be you.
The photos I'm posting show me the day before the surgery, and the day after. I'm about 6 weeks out from surgery now, so still healing...in more ways than one.
Replies (2)
July 12, 2022
Thank you so much for sharing this!
I’m currently experiencing similar symptoms- edema and hard granulomas that unpredictability come and go from this horrific product. Unfortunately, my ignorance and trust in the provider at the time which was all the way back in 2015 led me to even allow these injections. They painted it out to be just another filler that lasted much longer. Had I actually been properly informed that it was PMMA and basically plastic being stuffed into my face I would have NEVER gone near it. Especially considering you can’t dissolve it when there are complications.
I’m seeing a provider on Wednesday to address the granulomas that have recently “woken up” and look like cystic acne bumps all over the right side of my forehead. They stayed dormant for two years and for whatever reason two weeks ago have woken up with vengeance.
It’s challenging to find any doctors that will help treat this so I’m fortunate that there may be some hope as far as managing this chronic complication.
I know you either have to excise or manage with intralesional
steroid treatments. There was some theory that treating with antibiotics helps manage but I tried that course of action this time and not only did it not resolve but only got worse.
I certainly hope I do not have to resort to having to cut my forehead open to excise. The thought of that is very scary.
I also have to get a deep plane facelift sooner than I would have planned to restore my lower face to its proper proportions as the Bellafill just continued to bloat and weigh my lower face down.
I’m right there with you when you say stay very far away from Bellafill…
Permanent Filler EQUALS Permanent problems.
I will post my own review after being evaluated on Wednesday as to be another voice to speak out against this most horrible product.
I’m currently experiencing similar symptoms- edema and hard granulomas that unpredictability come and go from this horrific product. Unfortunately, my ignorance and trust in the provider at the time which was all the way back in 2015 led me to even allow these injections. They painted it out to be just another filler that lasted much longer. Had I actually been properly informed that it was PMMA and basically plastic being stuffed into my face I would have NEVER gone near it. Especially considering you can’t dissolve it when there are complications.
I’m seeing a provider on Wednesday to address the granulomas that have recently “woken up” and look like cystic acne bumps all over the right side of my forehead. They stayed dormant for two years and for whatever reason two weeks ago have woken up with vengeance.
It’s challenging to find any doctors that will help treat this so I’m fortunate that there may be some hope as far as managing this chronic complication.
I know you either have to excise or manage with intralesional
steroid treatments. There was some theory that treating with antibiotics helps manage but I tried that course of action this time and not only did it not resolve but only got worse.
I certainly hope I do not have to resort to having to cut my forehead open to excise. The thought of that is very scary.
I also have to get a deep plane facelift sooner than I would have planned to restore my lower face to its proper proportions as the Bellafill just continued to bloat and weigh my lower face down.
I’m right there with you when you say stay very far away from Bellafill…
Permanent Filler EQUALS Permanent problems.
I will post my own review after being evaluated on Wednesday as to be another voice to speak out against this most horrible product.
January 4, 2023
Hi thank you for sharing. Do you mind sharing who did your removal and facelift?
UPDATED FROM sfsutherland
6 months post
Still fighting the edema
So, still seeing a dermatologist weekly at the moment, and have scheduled 2 follow ups with another dermatologist just to see if they have any other possible ideas to help with this edema, and 2 plastic surgeons. My current derm has injected 4 vials of Voluma so far and 2 of Vollure to see if she can help lift my sagging face back up. I'm taking a daily supplement (Water Ease) which helps enormously, but if I forget to take it, I look just like I looked after the Bellafill did its damage. So, the supplement is just keeping the swelling at bay--not actually healing anything. The pockets of fluid alongside my mouth are still therem along with the deep grooves that have formed on both sides of my mouth.
There are now 2 small pockets of edema above MY EYEBROWS where, for who knows what reason, the injector also placed some Bellafill, according to the treatment chart. There are many areas where my current dermatologist says she can't understand why Bellafill would have been injected there.
The worse part is that my entire facial expression has been altered by this process with the Bellafill and I don't look happy like I used to. I look angry all the time as the edema around the eyes and above them has given me an angry look when my face is at rest. I have to focus on what my expression looks like, and I've discovered that looking angry makes you feel angry, weirdly. I find myself worrying about things like how I hold my face so that it doesn't droop. Terrible.
REPEAT ADVICE: Walk quickly away from Bellafill. I wish I had.
There are now 2 small pockets of edema above MY EYEBROWS where, for who knows what reason, the injector also placed some Bellafill, according to the treatment chart. There are many areas where my current dermatologist says she can't understand why Bellafill would have been injected there.
The worse part is that my entire facial expression has been altered by this process with the Bellafill and I don't look happy like I used to. I look angry all the time as the edema around the eyes and above them has given me an angry look when my face is at rest. I have to focus on what my expression looks like, and I've discovered that looking angry makes you feel angry, weirdly. I find myself worrying about things like how I hold my face so that it doesn't droop. Terrible.
REPEAT ADVICE: Walk quickly away from Bellafill. I wish I had.
Replies (5)
October 6, 2021
I'm so sorry. Bellafill is the worst. Any kind of permanent filler is so dangerous. I hope your issues eventually resolved, which I believe they will but it might take some time. I had to deal with the fallout from sculptra for nine months before it' subsided. Have they tried any kind of steroid use on you? Like a Medrol pack?
March 5, 2022
No. The edema is resolving very slowly but the damage to the skin is done and at age 66, it's not repairing itself.
October 6, 2021
yes, steroids do help, but I have lymphoma so they're not the best idea for me. I had Sculptra several times in the past and never had an issue with it. I hope yours gets better too.
February 14, 2024
The great thing about Sculptra is that it will dissolve on its own over the course of around 2.5 years (varies depending upon the person, like most things). But the collagen tissue which builds up around the Sculptra 'scaffolding' retains its shape. So no loss of volume, other than new loss due to natural aging and how we progressively lose tissue year upon year.
I'm very glad for you that you managed to resolve the problem with the mini facelift! That is brilliant, and much better than having excisions and scrapings or laser excisions.
I have a question about the mini facelift - I've seen several drs on youtube claim they are of little benefit to anyone over 35 -- but yours looks great! What did they do exactly, who was the doctor, and roughly what was the cost range? Nearing 60 here...and thinking ahead, since fillers are just so temporary, but anything permanent is just too risky.
I'm very glad for you that you managed to resolve the problem with the mini facelift! That is brilliant, and much better than having excisions and scrapings or laser excisions.
I have a question about the mini facelift - I've seen several drs on youtube claim they are of little benefit to anyone over 35 -- but yours looks great! What did they do exactly, who was the doctor, and roughly what was the cost range? Nearing 60 here...and thinking ahead, since fillers are just so temporary, but anything permanent is just too risky.
October 17, 2021
Bella fill was a total waste of money for me. It lasted about 2 months and then disappeared. So sorry you are having these side effects.
October 17, 2021
The collagen base always dissipates after 2 months. It takes about 6 to see any results. Unfortunately there can be many complications. I hope you continue to not see anything. How long have you had it and how much did you get injected?
October 18, 2021
If my "results" had disappeared in 2 months I would have been very grateful :-) As it is, I still have a pocket of fluid on both sides of my mouth that won't go away and it's going on 8 months now.
October 18, 2021
I had a total of 5 syringes. I think he did 3 at that time and then 3 weeks later he did the other two. I didn’t realize it would take six months to see other results or complications. I wish I had never had it done.
October 18, 2021
We have a support group going where we are trying to find ways to remove it and ways to try and deal with the horrible side effects. I sent you a message if you are interested in joining.
October 18, 2021
Yes, I would like to join. I spoke with a friend where I live and she said they stopped using the Bellafill in their practice some time ago due to all the issues it was causing. It has been 6 months since my injections, so hopefully I have escaped some of the complications.
October 18, 2021
That is good. Hopefully you won’t. I sent you my number in your inbox. Text me and I’ll send you the link to our WhatsApp group.
October 19, 2021
Hopefully you won’t get any complications. I have edema so far but it’s pretty rough. I feel it’s also starting to cause jowls I didn’t have prior to injections. It’s really emotionally trying.
Replies (5)