Bellafill Care Instructions

Bellafill is the only filler we use that is permanent, and the only one that requires an allergy skin test four weeks before treatment. Everything you need to know before and after your treatment.

This page is for Bellafill — PMMA microspheres in bovine collagen. Fillers are not interchangeable and the aftercare genuinely differs between them — if you were treated with something else, ask us for the right sheet rather than following this one.

Before your treatment

Bellafill takes two appointments before any treatment happens, four weeks apart. The first is a skin test. This is a requirement of the product, not a clinic preference, and it cannot be shortened or skipped.

Four weeks before — the skin test

  • We inject 0.1 cc of the Bellafill skin test into the inner surface of your forearm.
  • The result is evaluated over a full four-week period before we treat you.
  • Tell us about any redness, firmness, tenderness, swelling or itching at the test site, and about any rash, joint aching or muscle aching anywhere, at any point in those four weeks.
  • If the result is unclear we repeat the test in the other arm and wait a further four weeks.

Three weeks before

  • Stop St John's Wort, high-dose vitamin E, fish oil and omega-3 supplements, aspirin and other anti-inflammatories such as ibuprofen.
  • Never stop a prescribed medication without your physician's approval.

Twenty-four hours before

  • No alcohol.

On the day

  • Arrive with clean, makeup-free skin so we can assess the area properly.

Please tell us before we begin

  • A positive skin test, or two unclear ones — either rules out treatment entirely
  • A history of severe allergies or a severe allergic reaction
  • Allergy to lidocaine
  • Any allergy to bovine collagen or beef products
  • A bleeding disorder
  • A tendency to keloid or thickened, raised scarring
  • Pregnancy or breastfeeding

The skin test is not a formality. Bellafill contains bovine collagen and lidocaine, and the PMMA microspheres are not absorbed by the body — once placed, they stay. That permanence is the point of the product, and it is also why we are careful about who is a candidate.

Plan your downtime. Swelling, redness, pain, bruising and small lumps or bumps are all common straight afterwards — in the US studies between fifty-eight and sixty-nine per cent of patients had each of them. They were mild and resolved in about a week on average, and in most patients within two weeks. Correction was maintained throughout the twelve-month studies.

After your treatment

Immediately after

  • An ice pack or cold compress may be used straight after treatment.

For six hours

  • Do not touch the treated area.

Until the redness and swelling have settled

  • Avoid exposing the treated area to intense cold or heat.

For twenty-four hours

  • No strenuous exercise. Light walking is fine.

For two weeks

  • No facials or massage on the treated areas.

Small lumps in the first fortnight are usually just swelling. Nearly six in ten patients notice them and they normally settle within two weeks. A firm nodule that appears later is a different thing and we want to see it — see below.

Rare, but treat it as an emergency: severe or steadily increasing pain, skin that turns white, blotchy or dusky, or any change in your vision. Call us immediately on (949) 998-5501 — phone, not text — or go straight to an emergency room. Caught early this is manageable — caught late it is not.

Call or text us right away if

  • a firm lump or nodule appears at any point afterwards, even years later. Granulomas have been reported anywhere from immediately after treatment to three and a half years later, and they are treatable — but we need to see them.
  • swelling or bruising is getting worse rather than settling after forty-eight hours.
  • you develop spreading redness, warmth, pus or a fever — these are signs of infection.

General guidance only; it does not replace the advice your practitioner gives you. If you are unsure about a health condition or medication, speak to your physician. For any isolated adverse reaction, seek medical assistance.

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Aurora MD Aesthetics & Head Spa
21224 Beach Blvd, Huntington Beach, CA 92648
(949) 998-5501 — call or text · hello@auroramdspa.com

Questions or concerns at any point in your recovery? Call or text us on (949) 998-5501 — we would always rather hear from you early.