Do the latest skin-enhancing injectables deliver? Two beauty writers investigate

Over 15 years ago, the FDA in America certified that Botox was safe to administer and within the last decade, the muscle-freezing fluid has become a standard treatment for women wanting to eradicate lines. The way of using it has changed though and few of us want that tight, frozen look that took hold in the Noughties.

Like Botox, dermal fillers have had mixed press in the past too, due to the photos that emerged of celebrities who had overdone the injectable and been left with pillowy lips and cheeks. As the ‘less is more’ ethos has taken precedence, both Botox and filler have become maintenance treatments, like facials, that have provided some women with a natural-looking, youthful glow.  

As science improves, so does the quality of the age-defying injectables and with several new launches on the horizon this autumn, we asked two established beauty writers to put them to the test…

Alice Hart Davis on Profhilo

“When is filler not a filler? When it’s Profhilo, one of the new breed of beneath-the-skin moisturising treatments, which has to be one of the quickest and most effective cosmetic fixes I have ever tried.

Facial fillers, as you’ll know, are used for replenishing the volume in the face that has ebbed away with age, gently plumping out gaunt cheeks and deflated lips. They’re mostly made from hyaluronic acid, which holds up to 1,000 times its weight in water, lasts up to nine months and is a molecule our body makes naturally.

But Profhilo is different. It’s a very runny gel made of hyaluronic acid, which acts a ‘tissue stimulator’. Not only does it provide deep-down, long-lasting hydration, but it remodels the skin be geeing up production of firming collagen and springy elastin (all clinically proven, of course) which smooths and tightens skin.

Its point of difference to other treatments of this ilk, including Juvederm’s Volite and Restylane’s Skin Boosters, is that rather than scores of pinprick injections all you need is five small jabs on each side of your face.

I had my treatment with Dr Saira Vasdev at the Waterhouse Young clinic, who said that it is proving so effective and popular that almost all of her patients are adding it into their treatment plans.

I left the clinic with a few slightly alien-looking bumps on my face (the ones on the corner of the cheekbone and jaw were more obvious than the others), each one containing 0.2ml of Profhilo, but within 12 hours these had all settled down as the product weaselled its way around the deeper layers of my skin. By the time I went back for my second round of treatment a month later, my skin was so much less dry that I scarcely need moisturiser. Another two months, and I’ll be seeing the collagen-boosting effects too. I can’t wait.”

Profhilo, ￡975 for two treatments, one month apart at the Waterhouse Young clinic. A follow-up treatment is usually required after six months, depending on how your body responds to the treatment.

Beatrice Aidin on Kybella

“Numbed up to the nines at the New York Dermatology Group in Manhattan, I am having a dozen injections of a fat melting treatment called Kybella injected in my chin. Previously an area that could only be treated with surgery, I’m hoping for a sleek, neat youthful jawline to defy gravity.

But how does this wonderstuff work? “Kybella contains a molecule of acid that destroys the fat cells,” says Dr David Colbert, founder of the practise. “The waste fat cells then get metabolised by the body through the liver and kidneys and leave the body.” But could too much melt too many fat cells resulting in a turkey neck?  

“So long as your practitioner follows the formula then that won’t happen,” he replies confidently. Add to that “the treatment doesn’t simply remove fat,” says London based Dr Tijion Esho who been trailing Kybella, or Belkyra as it will be known in the UK when it launches at the end of this year. “It causes contraction and firming of the surrounding tissue with the result of a tauter, lifted and defined chin and jawline.”

There is downside; my skin looks is red and angry and for five days I have a lump in my throat which doesn’t feel uncomfortable, I just look like I have swallowed a boiled egg. The required waiting time of six weeks later, and I can’t really see a difference. But it wouldn’t be fair to claim it doesn’t work – two or six treatments are required one month apart and I am not in the US for long enough.

But this autumn and despite the name - Belkyra sounds to me like a Valkyrie – I am certain to be testing it especially as unlike other injectable such as Botox, and filler, which need topping up every six months, once the fat cells are destroyed they are gone for good so no more treatments are required. “A double chin is such a common problem I expect this to become one of the top five most sought after procedures in our clinic,” says Dr Esho. I for one will be first in line.”

Kybella, price on request at the Esho Clinic. 

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