Understanding Sculptra: A Game-Changer in Skin Care

Natural beauty comes from within—so does collagen, the protein that keeps your skin looking naturally tight and toned. Collagen is responsible for your skin's strength and structure, but when organic production begins to dwindle around the mid-to-late 20s, wrinkles and fat loss can quickly follow. Enter Sculptra, a one-of-a-kind injectable that works with your body to not only stimulate collagen production but also gradually create more over time!

More than just a filler, Sculptra is a biocompatible, biodegradable injectable formulated with poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA), a compound that triggers your body's own collagen production. Once injected, Sculptra works to reduce wrinkles, soften contours, and treat areas of fat loss in the face.

What is Sculptra?

Sculptra is a biostimulatory filler. Unlike true dermal fillers, such as Juvéderm, which contain ingredients like hyaluronic acid to plump the skin, the ingredients in Sculptra help stimulate your body's natural collagen production process to gradually add volume over time. By targeting collagen production at the source, Sculptra addresses the underlying causes of skin concerns—like fine lines and facial sagging—instead of simply treating the symptoms.

To truly answer the question of "what is Sculptra," it's important to begin with its leading ingredient: poly-L-lactic acid, better known as PLLA. PLLA is a polymer of lactic acid, the same compound that your muscles use as a primary energy source. It was first synthesized for medical use in the 1990s in medical sutures to stimulate natural healing and was later approved as a bio-stimulator to treat subcutaneous fat loss beneath the skin.

How Sculptra Treatment Works

Once injected into the dermis, Sculptra helps to restore the skin's inner structure via fibroblasts, types of cells that secrete collagen to strengthen the connective tissues that give the face structure. It continues to promote and enhance natural collagen production over time to improve skin texture, correct deep lines and wrinkles, and increase facial volume.

Sculptra treatment involves a series of injections over two to three sessions, spaced between four and six weeks apart. It's commonly injected with a thin cannula for less bruising and more comfort and requires a minor massage for five minutes, five times per day for five days post-treatment. Because Sculptra naturally plumps and tightens at the source, it offers more natural-looking results that last three to five times longer than traditional fillers.

Benefits of Sculptra

One of my favorite advantages of Sculptra is that it's designed for anyone who wants to build new collagen, regardless of age or gender. Instead of true dermal fillers like Juvéderm, which utilize ingredients like hyaluronic acid to plump areas of volume loss, you can plump the skin with your own natural collagen. Not to mention, you can simply use Sculptra as a complement to other plumping fillers to guarantee continuous, gradual results.

Another benefit of Sculptra treatment is the natural-looking results. Because Sculptra facilitates continuous collagen production, results are incremental and even continue a few months after your last treatment. For those with deep wrinkles, recessed areas of skin, and facial contours that have sagged or lost definition over time, Sculptra rekindles collagen production to actively address these problem areas without creating a harsh or frozen-looking appearance.

The top benefits of Sculptra treatments to consider include, but are not limited to:

• Sculptra was first approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2004 and continues to receive new approvals to safely address additional treatment areas on the face.
• Sculptra is a type of biostimulatory filler that naturally replenishes collagen production in the skin, rather than relying on other plumping ingredients to facilitate similar results.
• Sculptra treatment is shown to effectively treat areas of volume loss, reducing fine lines and wrinkles and targeting problem areas at the source to better meet your cosmetic goals.

Rebuild Natural Collagen with Sculptra

You will start to see the results of Sculptra injections within three to six months, beginning after your first treatment session and continuing through a few months after your last. After the full series of two to three sessions, Sculptra results can last for up to two years, though you may want a touch-up before then to continue promoting collagen production.

If you're interested in enhancing your natural beauty with your own organic collagen production, Sculptra is definitely the med spa treatment for you. Here at the Center for Plastic Surgery in Chelmsford, Massachusetts, Sculptra is the latest injectable to be added to our extensive list of facial treatments. When you're ready to begin rebuilding your natural collagen—and refreshing your appearance—schedule a consultation at our Chelmsford office to get started.