The natural process of aging is accompanied by various anatomical and physiological changes. Subcutaneous fat underlying the face is gradually lost and the facial muscles thus come in close proximity to the skin. This leads to the appearance of obvious smile lines, crow’s feet when the facial muscles are worked.

Aging also makes the facial skin lose some of its elasticity thereby stretching slightly and making the loss of facial volume more apparent. Heredity, lifestyle, and exposure to the sun are also partly responsible for the loss of facial volume and shape.

Different classes of dermal fillers have different ways of helping restore this volume and shape. Skin boosters are dermal fillers that act by improving water retention at the dermal layer, thereby increasing the suppleness of the skin and its overall texture and quality. Hyaluronic acid fillers work by complementing the depleted hyaluronic acid production by the skin. Hyaluronic acid has a high affinity for water. It, therefore, helps in improving internal hydration and overall smoothness, texture, and quality of the facial skin.

Yet another class of dermal fillers, known as synthetic fillers work by stimulating the natural process of collagen formation in the dermal layer of the skin. These are very effective and tend to last longer while requiring much fewer maintenance visits to the physician. Synthetic fillers, however, cost more than other types of dermal fillers.