Can You Get Botox® and Fillers at the Same Time?

You never think it’ll happen to you until one day you look in the mirror and you see the beginning signs of aging — fine lines, wrinkles, sags, and lax skin. Some people embrace getting older, but if you’re not one of them, don’t worry; at Associates in Family Medicine, Dr. Mahshid M. Hamidi and our staff offer Botox® and dermal fillers to help you turn back the clock.

Many of our patients ask us if they can get both treatments at the same time, and the answer is yes! Here’s how they work.

What are dynamic wrinkles, and how do you treat them?

Dynamic wrinkles are caused by muscle movement. Every time you smile, frown, raise your eyebrows, or purse your lips, the underlying muscles tug at the skin above them. Initially, the skin is able to bounce back once you stop making the expression, but as you get older, it gets harder to recover, and the lines get etched into your face.

Botox (onabotulinumtoxinA), a bacterial neurotoxin, received FDA approval in 1989 to treat two rare eye muscle disorders in adults – blepharospasm and strabismus. It was then approved in 2002 (as Botox Cosmetic) for the treatment of glabellar lines, the vertical lines that appear between your eyebrows.

Since that time, its approval has been extended to also treat crow’s feet and forehead lines.

Botox works by interfering with the signals nerves send to the muscles telling them to contract. Without contraction, the muscles can’t pull on the overlying skin, and wrinkles and fine lines soften and disappear.

Botox results last for about 3-4 months, after which you can get another treatment.

What are static wrinkles, and how do you treat them?

Static wrinkles are those caused by loss of volume, especially by the depletion over time of the body’s stores of collagen and elastin, two structural proteins that give skin its strength, resilience, and tone. Volume loss can lead to deep nasolabial folds (lines from the corners of your mouth to the sides of your nose), sagging skin, and hollowed cheeks.

Dermal fillers are an injectable treatment that add a substance to shore up folds and sagging skin. Some types even trigger the production of new collagen and elastin, amplifying your results.

Fillers are made from a number of different substances, including:

• Hyaluronic acid (HA), a moisture-retaining substance naturally occurring in the skin
• Hydroxyapatite, a mineral
• Poly-L-lactic acid, a synthetic substance

Common types of HA fillers, which tend to be the most popular, include the Juvéderm® line, each product formulated for a different area; Belotero® Balance; and Restylane®.

Results can last for 6-18 months, and you can repeat the procedure when they wear off.

Can you get Botox and fillers at the same time?

Absolutely! Because Botox works on dynamic wrinkles, and fillers work on static wrinkles, they pair together quite well. Used together, they’re sometimes called a “liquid face-lift.” That’s because people who aren’t yet ready for a surgical solution see great success in de-aging their faces with injectables alone.

If you’re unhappy with the visible signs of aging but don’t want to go under the knife, Associates in Family Medicine can help with the 1-2 punch of Botox and fillers.

Give our San Diego, California, office a call at 858-565-6394 to schedule an appointment with Dr. Hamidi, or send us a message online. We also accept telehealth appointments.