Dermal Filler Products We Use

Fillers are not interchangeable, and the differences between them are the reason a practice carries more than one. They vary in how firm they are, how much water they attract, how they integrate with surrounding tissue, how long they last, and whether they can be dissolved if something needs correcting. A product that is right for a jawline is wrong beneath a lower eyelid.

Sam Assassa, MD presented on Volumetric Facial Rejuvenation at the International Academy of Cosmetic Surgery congress and has worked across the full range of filler formulations in three decades of practice in Los Angeles. He founded Beverly Hills Aesthetics in 1995 and is board certified in Internal Medicine. Dr. Assassa founded the American Association of Aesthetic Medicine and Surgery and has served as its President since 2006

“Patients ask for a product by name because they read about it. I would rather they tell me what bothers them and let me pick, because the wrong product in the right place still looks wrong.” — Sam Assassa, MD

Explore the Dermal Fillers We Use

Beverly Hills Aesthetics offers a curated selection of advanced dermal fillers, each chosen for its ability to address specific concerns such as volume loss, contour refinement, and skin support.

Patients are encouraged to explore the fillers below to better understand how each option may be used in treatment.

How the Fillers Compare

Juvéderm Voluma® and Restylane® Lyft both carry FDA approval for cheek augmentation, and Voluma additionally for chin augmentation. Restylane® Lyft also carries approval for the back of the hands. Approved indications are worth knowing, because most filler placement outside them is off label, which is legal and standard but worth being told.

Hyaluronic Acid Fillers

Most treatment here uses hyaluronic acid, and for good reason. It is a substance your body already produces, it integrates with the surrounding tissue rather than sitting apart from it, and it can be dissolved with an enzyme if the result is not what you wanted. That reversibility is a genuine safety feature rather than a marketing point.

Within the category the products differ meaningfully. Some are formulated as smooth gels that spread and blend, others as firmer particulate gels that hold their shape under load. The first suits soft tissue and mobile areas, the second suits structural work where the product needs to resist the weight of the tissue above it.

• Juvéderm®: Smooth gel formulations covering a wide range of uses from lips to nasolabial folds.
• Juvéderm Voluma®: The most structural of the Juvéderm range, placed deep for cheek and chin projection.
• Restylane®: A firmer, more defined gel that holds its shape well where definition is the goal.
• Restylane® Lyft: The heavier product in that range, used for deep support in the cheeks and hands.
• Belotero®: Formulated to integrate very smoothly into the skin, which makes it useful for fine lines and thin-skinned areas where a firmer product would show.

Calcium Hydroxylapatite

• Radiesse®: Not a hyaluronic acid product. Radiesse provides immediate structural support and also stimulates your own collagen production over the following months, so part of its effect develops rather than appearing at the appointment.

Two things follow from that difference. Radiesse is firmer than most hyaluronic acid fillers, which makes it suited to structural lifting such as vector lifting. And it cannot be dissolved, so a result that needs adjusting resolves with time rather than with an enzyme. That is the main reason placement with it is deliberately conservative.

Rhinofill® for the Nose

• Rhinofill®: The filler protocol used for non-surgical rhinoplasty, placing product along specific angles of the nose to camouflage a dorsal hump, lift the tip, or correct asymmetry.

The nose carries the highest vascular risk of any filler site on the face, which is why this is treated as its own protocol rather than as filler placed in another location.

How the Product Is Chosen

Selection is a technical decision made after examining the area, not a preference or a menu choice. It depends on:

• The depth being treated. Deep structural placement against bone calls for a firmer product. Superficial placement under thin skin calls for one that integrates smoothly, since a firm product placed shallowly shows as a ridge or a bluish cast.
• How much support is needed. Rebuilding a jawline is load-bearing work. Softening a fine line is not.
• How much the area moves. Highly mobile regions like the lips break product down faster and suit softer, more flexible formulations.
• Whether reversibility matters. For a first treatment, or anywhere you are uncertain, hyaluronic acid is generally the right answer for that reason alone.
• Your skin thickness and tissue quality, which vary considerably between patients and change what a given product will look like once placed.

Combining products across one treatment plan is common, since different areas of the same face call for different materials.

Risks and Safety

All of these products are used in medical procedures with real risks.

Common effects include swelling, bruising, tenderness, and temporary firmness while the product settles. Asymmetry can occur and is usually correctable at follow up. Nodules can form, and are more likely with the firmer products and with superficial placement.

Rarely, filler injected into or compressing a blood vessel can restrict blood flow, causing tissue damage, and in very rare cases has been associated with vision loss. That risk is highest at the nose, the glabella, and the forehead. It is reduced by anatomical knowledge, correct depth, small volumes injected slowly, and a physician able to recognise and begin treating a vascular event immediately.

Products that are not hyaluronic acid cannot be dissolved, which is a meaningful consideration in choosing between them.

Individual results vary and no outcome can be guaranteed.

Frequently Asked Questions About Filler Products

Are all dermal fillers the same?

No, and the differences are the reason a practice carries several. They vary in firmness, in how much water they attract, in how smoothly they integrate with tissue, in how long they last, and critically in whether they can be dissolved. Hyaluronic acid products can be reversed with an enzyme. Calcium hydroxylapatite cannot. A firm structural product suits a jawline and would be visible as a ridge under thin eyelid skin.

Which filler lasts the longest?

Among the products used here, Juvéderm Voluma® placed deep in the midface can last up to two years, and Radiesse® typically lasts a year or more. Duration depends as much on placement as on product, since filler in static areas like the cheek, chin, and temple outlasts the same product in the lips, where constant movement breaks it down faster. Longest lasting is not automatically best, since a product that cannot be dissolved commits you to the result.

Can I request a specific filler?

You can, and it is worth saying what you have read and why. But the product should follow the assessment rather than lead it, because the same brand name covers formulations with quite different properties, and the right choice depends on your skin thickness, the depth being treated, and how much support the area needs. Dr. Assassa will tell you what he is recommending and why.

Which fillers can be dissolved?

All the hyaluronic acid products here, meaning Juvéderm®, Juvéderm Voluma®, Restylane®, Restylane® Lyft, and Belotero®, can be dissolved with hyaluronidase, generally within a day or two. Radiesse® cannot, and neither can fat. If reversibility matters to you, that narrows the options and is worth raising at consultation before anything is placed.

Are these fillers FDA approved?

All are FDA approved products, though approval is granted for specific indications rather than for facial filling generally. Juvéderm Voluma® is approved for cheek and chin augmentation, Restylane® Lyft for cheeks and the back of the hands, and Radiesse® for nasolabial folds and hands. Placement outside an approved indication is off-label use, which is legal, common, and well established in aesthetic practice, and it is discussed at your consultation.

How much do dermal fillers cost in Beverly Hills?

Cost varies by product and by how much a particular area requires, and structural work such as a jawline or full midface restoration uses considerably more than a targeted refinement. Pricing is confirmed at consultation once a plan exists. Current figures are on the fees page and several payment options are available.

Schedule a Consultation in Beverly Hills

The useful conversation is not which product you want but what you want changed, since the first follows from the second. Dr. Assassa will assess the area, tell you which product he would use and why, and explain what it will and will not do. Beverly Hills Aesthetics serves patients from Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, West Hollywood, and Century City. Request a consultation or schedule your appointment online.