WAILEA, HAWAII – American dermatologists are now gaining access to a lot of new hyaluronic acid-based fillers, designed to address limitations in the older, tried-and-true product lines, according to Nowell Solish, MD.

These products have been available in Canada for years. Dr. Solish, a dermatologist at the University of Toronto, shared insights regarding their optimal use, based on his extensive experience with them.

Speaking at the Hawaii Dermatology Seminar provided by the Global Academy for Medical Education/Skin Disease Research Foundation, Dr. Solish focused on the three Allergan hyaluronic acid (HA)-based fillers that employ the company’s newer proprietary Vycross technology – Voluma, Volbella, and Volift – as well as Galderma’s nonanimal stabilized HA, or NASHA technology, used in Restylane Refyne and Restylane Defyne.

Allergan’s earlier Juvéderm Ultra range of dermal fillers is based on Hylacross, which utilizes crosslinked high–molecular weight HA.

“These products have been around a long time and have lots of benefits, but there were definitely some things missing in the product line,” he explained. “We wanted more control of gel swelling – that is, how much water the hyaluronic acid takes up.”

The Vycross technology employs a proprietary mix of low– and high–molecular weight HA, which results in a highly crosslinked gel that’s moldable immediately after injection, displays minimal gel swelling, and is designed to last longer than earlier-generation fillers.

The main difference between the three products lies in their HA concentrations: Juvéderm Voluma XC has the highest concentration of HA and Juvéderm Volbella XC the lowest, with Volift in between.

The company claims that outcomes with Volbella and Volift last up to 12 months, while Voluma outcomes lasts for up to 24 months. Dr. Solish suggested that his American colleagues take that with a grain of salt.

“I would say I always underpromise and overdeliver with my patients,” he noted. “I think you can probably detect Voluma at 2 years, but, the question is, how good is the effect? How happy is the patient? I think 2 years is a little bit of a stretch. I think it lasts for about 9 months to a year before reinjection.”

Voluma has been available in the United States for several years, while Dr. Solish has been using it far longer. His impression is that Voluma is great for creating volume, especially in the cheeks, midface, and submalar area. He finds that he gets his best results by implanting the product in a series of small, 0.2-mL, tent-like boluses. The reinjection volume is typically substantially less than that employed in initial treatment.

Volbella received approval from the FDA in autumn 2016 for perioral injection and is just now reaching the U.S. marketplace.

“In my humble opinion, I don’t think Volbella is really good for volume,” he explained. “I think it’s great for what I call lip hydration, to give that lip a lipstick look. Where I find that I use this product the most is for the perioral rhytids – the vertical lip lines people sometimes call smokers’ lines. I implant it in the lip mucosa to straighten out the folds.”

Dr. Solish cautioned that Volbella is a fast-flowing product.

“The thing you have to be careful about with Volbella is it has a very low extrusion force,” he noted. “That means it’s very easy to unload the syringe and get too much product out. And there’s no question that there’s a direct correlation between speed of injection and adverse events, mainly edema. So, just remember to slow your hand down, or off-label to add a 31- or even 32-gauge needle to the syringe.”

Volift is not yet approved in the United States, but it’s coming. Dr. Solish called it “a good workhorse product” for mild-to-moderate lines around the face.

“Sales will be much higher than for Volbella, because Volift is great for the in-between things,” the dermatologist continued. “You have Voluma for volume on the midface and cheeks, but Volift is great for nasolabial folds and, especially, for marionette lines and smile lines, where you don’t want a lot of bulk.”

The main adverse event encountered with any of the three products is delayed-onset development of nonpainful inflammatory nodules arising 3-6 months post injection. In one Canadian study, the incidence was less than 0.5% (Dermatol Surg. 2015 Sep;41[9]:1060-7).

Dr. Solish recommended treating the nodules with weekly or biweekly intralesional injections of hyaluronidase, followed by intralesional injections of 0.1 mL/cm² of triamcinolone (Kenalog) at 2.5 mg/mL to 5.0 mg/mL.

Turning to Galderma’s NASHA technology, Dr. Solish explained that it relies on naturally occurring entanglement of HA chains to create gel particles formulated at 20 mg/dL. By varying the gel particle size and the amount of crosslinking, the company has created a series of products with different properties.

Restylane Refyne features smaller-size particles and less crosslinking, which makes for a softer gel. It’s an excellent option for marionette lines, mild nasolabial folds, and small perioral lines, and “it’s my absolute go-to for tear troughs,” Dr. Solish said.

In contrast, Restylane Defyne has bigger gel particles and more extensive HA crosslinking. It is firmer than Refyne and is best suited for achieving lift and volume. He implants it in the cheeks, forehead, temples, and deeper nasolabial folds.

In addition to these two products, which are new to the United States, Galderma has rebranded Perlane as Restylane Lyft, approved for midfacial augmentation. Another product, Restylane Silk, is similar to Volbella in that it is fast-flowing and not a big volumizer. Dr. Solish called it “lipstick in a syringe,” best suited for improving definition of the lips and for addressing perioral fine lines.

Dr. Solish reported serving as an investigator and/or consultant for Allergan, Galderma, Indeed, Merz, Revance Therapeutics, and Valeant. The SDEF and this news organization are owned by the same parent company.

bjancin@frontlinemedcom.com

Know your new hyaluronic acid–based fillers