Juvéderm, Dermal Fillers & Ultrasound: Our Approach To Safety

Cosmetic procedures, such as Juvéderm and other dermal fillers, can help you look and feel your best, but we know that our patients’ main concern is always about safety and it’s our main concern as well. To that end, we utilize the power of ultrasound to boost safety and generate the best possible results.

Using ultrasound is one aspect that sets us apart from other cosmetic providers. You won’t often see this used at a typical day spa or even a medspa. In general, we highly recommend that anyone considering any type of filler or even procedures such as Botox, opt to have these done in a board-certified plastic surgeon’s office. This increases safety and ensures that the products we use are genuine and not expired products, which, unfortunately, sometimes is the case in a spa setting.

How We Use Ultrasound

With dermal fillers, using a handheld ultrasound device can help us identify important anatomy. For example, we can use it to ensure that we avoid blood vessels in certain areas of the face.

Obviously, we are well-versed in human anatomy, but every one of us is unique and just as people don’t look alike, their arteries aren’t always in precisely the same spot or at the same depth.

While any medical procedure comes with some associated risks, using ultrasound helps us greatly improve our safety profile and ensure optimum results. Anything we can do to ensure our patients’ safety is worth it.

We also take additional safety measures such as using cannulas instead of needles for dermal filler injections in certain areas. A cannula is a thin tube that can be inserted into the skin to deliver dermal fillers.

Using a cannula offers several advantages over needles. For instance, there can be a reduced risk of bruising and bleeding. There is also a lower risk of intravascular injection, and as we combine this with the use of ultrasound, this further increases the safety of the procedure. Cannulas also can minimize the patient’s discomfort, which is always a good thing.

Back to the ultrasound, we also use this in the OR for certain high-risk cosmetic surgeries. For instance, we might use this for a “Brazilian butt lift” to ensure we are in the proper plane.

We also might use ultrasound for a TAP block, which is transversus abdominis plane block, an anesthesia technique that offers prolonged numbing for patients undergoing a tummy tuck. A TAP block can make recovery more comfortable and help patients be less dependent on post-op pain medicines.

When it comes to ultrasound for minimally-invasive dermal fillers, we take this step with the following products:

Whether you head to our medical clinic for plastic surgery in Charleston or another provider, we strongly recommend that whenever you want injections in the lips, temple area or nasolabial area, you go to a provider that offers ultrasound with these procedures.

Which Fillers Should You Choose?

At Thaxton Plastic Surgery, we offer a wide range of dermal fillers as well as options such as Botox and baby Botox. We also now offer Daxxify (also known as Daxi), which is similar to Botox but contains a peptide that prolongs the effect of the treatment.

We often combine the use of Daxi or Botox with various Juvéderm products for a non-invasive “liquid facelift.” This can be a great way to boost your look without a surgical procedure.

Daxi or Botox can be used to smooth out frown lines and forehead lines, as well as crow’s feet and even bunny lines, which are the wrinkles that appear by the bridge of your nose. Botox and Daxi are not dermal fillers, so using ultrasound is not needed as an added safety precaution.

With hyaluronic-acid-based dermal fillers, such as Juvéderm, we can target areas of the face where Botox cannot be applied. For instance, Juvéderm Voluma can be used to provide more volume to your cheek areas. Juvéderm Ultra can be used to smooth out lines by the corners of your mouth.

We also offer several other procedures that stimulate collagen production, which can provide you with a more youthful look. For instance, Morpheus8 is a procedure that combines microneedling with RF energy to create tiny micro-injuries in the skin. This will stimulate collagen and elastin production and we can use this to improve skin texture, tone and tightness and even to reduce the appearance of acne scars.

If you have moderate to severe wrinkles, especially around the mouth and cheeks, we also offer Ellacor, which can improve your appearance in these areas. This is slightly different from a microneedling procedure, where we use tiny needles to puncture the skin. Ellacor is the most aggressive non-surgical face-tightening technology available at this time.

With Ellacor, we remove tiny amounts of dermal tissue to trigger collagen production. Unlike Morpheus 8, Ellacor also does not include the use of heat or thermal energy. We are the only plastic surgery practice in West Virginia offering Ellacor or any type of micro-coring procedure.

These are just a few of the many options that we offer at Thaxton Plastic Surgery. We invite you to book a consultation and we can sit down and discuss your beauty goals and which procedures might be the best fit for your needs.

Why Thaxton Plastic Surgery?

In addition to our use of ultrasound and our commitment to safety, the manufacturers of Botox and Juvéderm have named us as a Top 10 Location for these treatments. Our clinic is one of the highest rated in the state, and we have been named the best cosmetic procedure provider by the Charleson Gazette-Mail’s annual Best in the Valley awards.

Dr. Thaxton is not only certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgeons, but he also is one of only two practicing plastic surgeons in West Virginia to be an elected member of The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. Dr. Thaxton also has achieved Top Doctor status on the review website RealSelf.

Our goal is to provide you with cosmetic procedures and medspa services that help you to look at feel your absolute best and with safety as the top priority. With Thaxton Plastic Surgery, you can rest assured that any procedure you choose will offer optimum results and optimum safety.

Whether you are interested in dermal fillers, Botox, cosmetic surgery or perhaps dermaplaning or a chemical peel, we have a huge selection of options to suit just about anyone’s beauty goals. Get in touch with us at any time to discuss your beauty goals and set up a consultation.