Juvederm Dermal Fillers: A Look Behind the Injections
- Heather Oliver
- 16 hours ago
- 10 min read
Table of Contents:
Gone are the days when crying into a carton of ice cream or “going under the knife” was your only recourse against the hands of time. Now we have dermal fillers to help us reverse the clock or enhance our appearance. In this blog, you’ll learn all about dermal fillers—specifically Juvederm injectables—and how they can help you achieve your skin goals.
What Are Dermal Fillers and How Do They Work?
You’ve heard about them. You may even get them. But do you really know what they are and how fillers work? It’s actually quite interesting.
Fillers are injectable, non-surgical soft tissue implants containing natural or synthetic gel-like substances. They are injected under your skin—but not just anywhere and not in just any amount. Your injector follows (or should follow) a carefully crafted treatment plan, using highly customized amounts of filler tailored to your unique facial characteristics, challenges, and goals.
Due to the nature of fillers, it’s vital to have an experienced licensed medical professional administer them, as well as other injectables. This is your face we’re talking about, after all.
Why Alkali Uses Juvederm
At Alkali, we’re extremely selective when it comes to the brands we align with. What’s important to us is how products align with our values and how they perform.
We require safe ingredients and exceptional performance. As a carbon-neutral, Green Circle salon & spa, environmental impact is also a huge factor for us. Juvederm is a pharmaceutical that can’t be recycled like most of our other products, but we follow medical waste disposal practices whenever possible.
Alkali also offers complementary numbing. Our PA-C does a dental block for the lips, making injections relatively painless compared to most practices.
For dermal fillers, we chose Juvederm as one of our offerings because it’s been FDA-approved since 2006 and is backed by extensive studies and research—and the results are incredible. Subsequent variations of Juvederm have each been approved by the FDA as well, the newest being SkinVive in 2022, which I’ll cover in an upcoming blog.
We also chose Juvederm fillers because they use hyaluronic acid (HA), which exists naturally in the skin and is designed to attract and bind water. This is what helps plump and hydrate the skin.
To drive this point home even further, HA filler holds 64.4% of the filler market share, and Juvederm, made by Abbvie, is the number one brand in the market, with 83% of patients claiming Juvederm is a brand they trust. Our PA-C and injector, Elizabeth Boles Blankship, recommends it over any other brand, and many of Alkali’s own employees use Juvederm themselves.
Benefits of Juvederm Dermal Fillers
Juvederm’s main benefits are enhancing your natural beauty, gaining confidence, and boosting self-esteem. Looks can be as dramatic or subtle and natural-looking as you want. With this filler you can:
Restoring facial volume
Adding facial volume
Enhancing lip fullness
Facial contouring
Reduces wrinkles, fine lines, and folds
Improves texture
Now that you know why we chose Juvederm, let’s unpack the benefits and risks of this particular dermal filler.
87% of 368 patients thought their Juvederm results looked natural.
Is Juvederm safe?
Juvederm and other fillers that use hyaluronic acid have an exceptionally strong safety profile. In fact, fillers with hyaluronic acid have been successfully administered in more than 2.4 million procedures, and most people agree that the benefits far outweigh any risks. In Juvederm’s case, it has more FDA-approved injections for facial treatments than any other brand.
While other filler types like the ones mentioned above are considered safe and are FDA-approved, HA fillers are considered the safest out of all of them. Polylactic acid fillers are more of a medium risk, while PMMA fillers are considered to have the highest risk.
It's a common misconception that getting dermal fillers require being injected by full syringes of filler. How much is actually used may surprise you. A single syringe of Juvederm holds about a blueberry-sized amount of filler. Three syringes are only the size of a cherry! Injections are also spread out across multiple areas, each requiring very small amounts of substance.
Juvederm dermal fillers are FDA-approved for adults over 21 years old for acne scars, facial wrinkles, and skin folds and to increase the volume of the lips, chin, cheeks, and the back of the hand. They’re also approved for the correction of facial fat loss, also known as lipoatrophy.
Risks and Side Effects of Juvederm Dermal Fillers
Juvederm has a very low risk profile, and most side effects are mild, short-lived, and/or easy to correct. But it’s always important to be aware of potential drawbacks. We’ll be going into more in-depth about what to expect after a Juvederm injection in a follow-up blog, but here’s the most common side effects:
Redness
Swelling
Bruising
Tenderness
Lumps or bumps at or near the injection site
Itching or rash
Acute and delayed allergic reactions (delayed reactions occur in only 0.3-4.25% of patients, and are typically triggered by an illness or after a vaccination; immediate reactions are well below 1%)
Serious complications from HA fillers are very rare, and most are due to negligence or lack of experience, but there is a fractional risk of infection, uneven appearance, and necrosis. Case in point, a 2025 analysis of more than 290,307 HA filler injections found infection or necrosis rates were only 0.0041% or 4 out of 100,000 injections.
How Much Do Juvederm Injections Cost?
The top question we get about injections in general is “How much is it going to cost me?” Pricing for Juvederm varies by geographic location, the individual spa/med spa, the injector's expertise, filler type, and the number of syringes needed for your treatment.
On average, Juvederm costs between $600 and $800 per syringe. At Alkali, Juvederm starts at $625 per syringe. We also offer free consultations, where you’ll receive the precise cost based on your unique treatment plan.
Did you know? Alkali accepts payment plans through Cherry? Budgeting beauty’s never been easier—and it doesn’t hurt your credit score to apply.
How Long Does Juvederm Last?
The next most popular question we get about fillers is how long the treatment lasts. That’s where Juvederm really shines and gives you a great bang for your buck!
Juvederm injections usually last between six and 24 months, depending on the injection type you’re getting—with Voluma XC being the longest-lasting filler for midface corrections on the market (up to two years).
While fillers offer lasting results, injection type and duration also vary based on several other factors, which your provider will discuss with you:
Treatment area The area you're treating heavily influences how long your Juvederm injection will last. Areas like the jawline, chin, and cheeks tend to last the longest because they’re “static” areas, whereas the lips and area around the mouth move more frequently, which can affect duration.
Injection Technique Each provider has their own techniques for injectables, including the amount of filler and the placement. The better the technique, the longer your results will be (lifestyle factors excluded, of course).
Lifestyle It may come as a surprise, but your lifestyle can affect how long your injections last. Examples include metabolism, diet, how active you are, sun exposure, smoking, and your skin care routine.
Metabolism is different for everyone. And the faster your metabolism is, the faster your body will break down filler. So always keep this in mind when setting your expectations. As your metabolism typically slows down as you age, injectables tend to last longer in older adults, so at least there’s that when it comes to aging. 😉
A healthy diet and staying well hydrated help maintain the results of injectables.
The more active you are, the better your circulation, which is good, but it also speeds up filler breakdown.
If you’re a smoker, be aware that smoking speeds up the breakdown process of fillers
Excessive sun exposure accelerates hyaluronic acid breakdown.
A proper skin care routine and quality products can help extend your results. Your provider can give you expert at-home product recommendations based on your unique treatment, lifestyle, and goals.
Next, let’s look closer at each injection and what it does.
Choosing a Juvederm Filler: Which One is Right For You?
Ultimately, it’s up to your provider to decide which Juvederm injection is right for you, but here’s a breakdown of each type we offer and what they’re typically best for.
Juvederm Ultra and Ultra Plus Ultra is best for people who’ve had a lip filler before and want more structure, volume, and definition. It can also correct deeper lines and folds on the face.
Juvederm Volbella and Volbella XC Used to add volume to lips and treat undereye hollows.
Juvederm Vollure and Vollure XC Improves the appearance of moderate to severe facial wrinkles and folds. Fill nasolabial folds and add volume to cheeks with very thin skin.
Juvederm Voluma XC Contours and shapes the chin and adds volume to cheeks, which in turn, reduces the look of nasolabial folds.
Juvederm Volux Adds volume and sculpts the jawline to improve moderate to severe loss of jawline definition
Treatment is Case-by-case and Different for Each Client
Juvederm can also be used to treat undereye hollows and temples. However, these areas are more prone to complications and can have questionable results, especially if the injector isn't highly skilled. Our injector administers these injections on a case-by-case basis, but recommends other treatments for these areas that are safer and have much better outcomes.
The Secret to Correcting Facial Structure Is In the Cheeks
When talking to Alkali's injector, Elizabeth Boles Blankenship, MMS, PA-C, she revealed the true secret to correcting facial structure: Cheeks!
"When it comes to undereye hollows, temples, and nasolabial fold issues, if you don't treat the underlying cause—the loss of structure—the problem the client has won't be fully corrected. For example, if a client doesn't like their nasolabial folds, an injector can put lots of Juvederm there, but if they don't fill their cheeks, which restores their volume loss there, and therefore restores the structure, the nasolabial folds won't be fully corrected, and the client won't be as happy with their results." - Elizabeth Boles Blankenship, MMS, PA-C, Injector at Alkali
Elizabeth went on to explain that cheek filler also does wonders for undereye hollows and the temple area. Think of the cheeks as your face's structural foundation. If there are issues there, it affects other areas of your face.
Cheek Filler for the Jawline
Cheek filler can also help the jawline, marionette lines, and the lower face. It's all about restoring structural loss.
The Importance of the Chin When It Comes to Lip Filler
Another thing Elizabeth pointed out is that an injector should also consider the chin when a client desires lip filler.
"Many clients coming in for lip filler don't realize that getting lip filler can cause them to look imbalanced. The chin should align with the lips. Adding filler to a client with a recessed chin will cause their lips to look overfilled, their side profile to look disproportional, and, in turn, make their recessed chin look more pronounced. Chin filler provides a more balanced and proportional look." - Elizabeth Boles Blankenship, MMS, PA-C, Injector at Alkali
What Types of Dermal Fillers Are There?
There are several different brands of fillers. They’re all designed to enhance or correct skin and facial features, but each filler has its own formulation and things they treat:
Hyaluronic acid fillers
A substance naturally found in the body, and one of the most popular filler types. Notable brands using hyaluronic acid include Juvederm, Revanesse, Restylane, Belotero, and Revance RHA.
Hyaluronic acid fillers are the most flexible fillers and can treat more issues than their counterparts. Treatments include facial contouring, frown lines, crow’s feet, acne scars, deep laugh and smile lines, burn and wound scars, worry lines in the forehead, cheek depressions, eye hollows, marionette lines, smoker’s lines, improves facial fullness, thin lips, and more. Calcium hydroxylapatite (CaHA) fillers
This is a biosynthetic substance found in human bones, teeth, and hard tissue. Biosynthetic just means that natural molecules, enzymes, or microorganisms are used in a lab to create a product that mimics natural biological reactions. Examples of brands that use calcium hydroxylapatite include Radiesse, Hydroxyfill, and HarmonyCa.
CaHA is most used to treat nasolabial folds, loss of facial volume, and facial wasting from certain medications like HIV.
Polyalkylimide fillersPolyalkylimide is a biocompatible synthetic filler designed to make your body produce collagen. It causes collagen to form around the gel over time. This filler is considered semi-permanent and doesn’t always break down in the body, and can actually be removed later. Examples of brands that use polyalkylimide are Aquamid and Bio-Alcamid.Polyalkylimide fillers treat depressed scars, deep wrinkles, thin lips, loss of facial volume, and facial wasting.
Polylactic acid fillers (PLLA) Polyalkylimide is a biocompatible synthetic filler designed to make your body produce collagen. It causes collagen to form around the gel over time. This filler is considered semi-permanent and doesn’t always break down in the body, and can actually be removed later. Examples of brands that use polyalkylimide are Aquamid and Bio-Alcamid.
Polyalkylimide fillers treat depressed scars, deep wrinkles, thin lips, loss of facial volume, and facial wasting.
Polymethyl-methacrylate microspheres (PMMA) fillers A semi-permanent surgical implant, PMMA is a hybrid filler consisting of natural and synthetic ingredients. It stimulates collagen production and is a biodegradable substance. Examples of PMMA filler brands are Bellafill, Metacrill, and PrimeFill. PMMA treats medium to deep wrinkles, pitted scars, thin lips, folds, and furrows. PMMA is considered semi-permanent because it can last up to five years. The downside to this is that PMMA fillers don’t break down in the body like other fillers. Because of this, complications from PMMA fillers can appear much later than the time of injection, and complications tend to be more severe, can require complex procedures, or even surgery to treat. Some studies have found that poor technique can increase the risk of an adverse reaction. Yet another reason to always verify your injector's experience and expertise.
Stay tuned for our next blog about injectables, where we’ll discuss the healing process and what to expect after your Juvederm treatment. Alkali owner and CEO Amber Woodall will be sharing her personal experience with her most recent lip injections, and we'll include close-up shots of the first five days after injection.
Ready to enhance your natural beauty and gain more confidence? Book a FREE consultation with Elizabeth Boles Blankenship, MMS, PA-C to discuss which Juvederm treatment is right for you!
