Since your face is the most visible part of your body, it's one of the first to show signs of aging. As you get older, you tend to lose volume in your face and that can cause your face to look sunken in some areas and the skin to become slack and develops wrinkles. These changes happen gradually over time and they may bother or worry you at any age. While you may not be able to slow down the changes that come along with aging, you can fight them with dermal fillers. These injections plump up areas of your face that have volume loss so you can have a more youthful appearance. Here's how the cosmetic injection procedures work.

Your Doctor Chooses The Right Injection

Different solutions can be injected to add volume to your face, and they have different actions and last for different lengths of time. Your doctor will listen to your goals and assess your face to decide on the right injections for you. Hyaluronic acid injections are a common choice that can be used to plump up wrinkles and freshen your face. Hyaluronic acid is a natural substance found in your skin normally, and when it's injected, it's in a gel form that adds volume and fills wrinkles. You may need to repeat these injections once or twice a year to maintain the results. Other dermal fillers work in a similar way in that they plump up facial skin, but some can also stimulate the production of collagen so the results last longer.

The Injections Are An Outpatient Procedure

Having cosmetic injections is a quick and easy process to go through. The injection solution often contains a numbing agent, so the injections aren't painful. They can be done in your doctor's office on your lunch hour and you can go about your usual activities right away. The results from a cosmetic injection procedure are usually noticeable right away. You might have slight bruising, and your doctor may recommend that you avoid exercise for the rest of the day, but you should be able to go back to work without any discomfort or side effects.

Follow Through With The Treatment Plan

Since you pay for dermal fillers out of pocket, you want to know the treatment plan in advance so you know what to expect. The doctor will examine your face as a whole to determine how to maintain symmetry and balance. You may even want to take in a photo of when you were young and had plump skin to help your doctor understand your goals. It could require multiple injections to get the results you want, so before you begin treatment, you want to know the number of injections you'll need and how long they will last. This helps you prepare your finances so you can complete the entire treatment regimen and get the best effect from the procedure.