07 November 2025 : Review article
Facial Injectable Fillers in Aesthetic Medicine: Clinical Applications and Safety Strategies
Jie Liu A 1, Ming Gao EF 2, Huilin Hu CF 2, Hanyu Pang
BD 2, Yuyang Liu EF 2, Peng Zhang A 1*
DOI: 10.12659/MSM.949944
Med Sci Monit 2025; 31:e949944
Table 2 Summary of main facial fillers.
| Filler | Trade name | Purpose | Advantages | Disadvantages |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HA | Restylane; Juvederm; Belotero; Revanesse; RHA | Boasts a comprehensive range of applications, encompassing diverse treatment needs from fine to deep wrinkles, nasolabial folds, periocular and perioral lines, as well as malar and lip augmentation | Wide range of applications, a variety of G’ formulations easy to inject reversible | The effect is short, need to be repeated injection |
| PCL | Polycaprolactone | Resulting in natural firming of the skin, improvement of skin texture, increased elasticity | Continuous, instant, better than HA to fill the nasolabial groove, promote collagen generation, improves skin texture and elasticity, safe and effective | Limited effect (2 years), swelling, pain, erythema may occur at the injection site |
| PLLA | Sculptra | Simultaneously, it stimulates the production of collagen, enhances viscosity, addresses moderate to severe wrinkles, and performs facial volumization | Promotes collagen production, improves viscosity, improves wrinkles, facial volume, FDA-approved, lasts 2 years | The effect is slow, the initial need for multiple injections, not recommended around the eyes, mouth injection |
| CaHA | Radiesse | Promotes the production of collagen, effectively treating moderate to severe wrinkles, nasolabial folds, marionette lines, pre-jowl sulcus, and enhancing facial volume | FDA-approved for treating facial adipose loss associated with HIV/AIDS | High viscosity, easy to form nodules, not recommended fine lines, lips, eyes around the injection. |
| Silicone | Not applicable | Used to treat facial wrinkles caused by skin aging or photodamage, used in surgery to treat lip and nasal deformities | Low price, not easy to breed bacteria, sterilization, room temperature storage | Skin swelling, scarring, facial deformity |
| Autologous fat | Not applicable | Wide range of facial filler applications | Autologous transplantation, easy to obtain, with regenerative potential | Need to repeat injection, fat absorption leads to reduced effect |
| PRP | Platelet-rich plasma | Used as one of the fillers for facial cosmetics, regulates the proliferation and differentiation of cells, promotes vascular proliferation | Promote cell proliferation and differentiation, angiogenesis, improve skin fine lines | Low survival rate, easy absorption |
| HA – hyaluronic acid; PLLA – poly-L-lactic acid; PRP – platelet-rich plasma; CaHA – calcium hydroxyapatite; PMMA – polymethyl methacrylate; PCL – polycaprolactone. | ||||