Korean Fillers vs Imported fillers - Which is better?

Korean fillers are breaking through the beauty community year by year and going on to compete globally with international brands. The treatment of getting fillers itself is getting more and more popular as people realise the many uses for them. Whether that is correcting facial features that someone is dissatisfied with like nose, or getting fillers for wrinkles and loss in facial volume. However many are still confused about how the fillers work and what is the difference between Korean filler brands and 'imported' filler brands. The imported filler brands discussed are from countries outside of Korea, mainly the USA where the treatment was first made popular.

• Restylene: This is probably the most well known filler globally and is certainly the oldest. An American based and FDA approved brand, it is a hyaluronic acid based filler which is biphasic and is used to give volume in many areas of the face. It has sub brands which change the structure slightly so it suits the area more such as an under eye filler vs nose filler.
• Juvederm: This is another popular brand internationally. It has a monophasic structure which makes it gel like and spreads out smoothly under the skin so is used to treat wrinkles and facial lines. It doesn't give a lot of volume because of its structure.
• Ellanse: This is a french based filler brand that is not Hyaluronic acid. It mainly uses an ingredient called Poly-Caprolactone (PCL) which is held in a gel carrier. This carrier gives the immediate lifting effect but lasts only 12 weeks, after which the PCL starts to stimulate the skin tissue to produce collagen. This gives the final lifted result and can last up to 2 years which is more than other fillers.
• Sculptra: Another popular filler that doesn't use hyaluronic acid and uses poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA). This ingredient works similarly to Ellanse, as it also stimulates collagen and gives similar results of lifting. However there is more after care needed for it than Ellanse as you need to massage the treated area as directed by your doctor 5 times a day for 5 days after the treatment.

All the popularly used Korean fillers are Hyaluronic based but are made to be different during the manufacturing process

• Yvoire: One of the most popular Korean brand, it uses Hyaluronic acid that has a higher weight which needs special equipment to handle in the mixing part of the process. This makes a very concentrated mixture of hyaluronic acid which means the hyaluronic molecules are close together and can make more cross links. This makes for a more stable biphasic structure and filler.
• Elravie: This filler has a monophasic structure that uses a high weighted Hyaluronic acid. It uses special technology to make sure only cross linked hyaluronic acid is in the gel which makes it more viscous or thicker. This means the filler doesn't spread easily and the shape stays more defined.
• Cleviel: Famous as a specialised nose filler because of how viscous it is which is done by using a purer version of hyaluronic acid that has impurities and toxins taken out. This means there are more cross links that form and so the structure is thicker and more stable.
• Tissuefill: This filler combines hyaluronic acid and PRP (Plasma Rich Platelets). The filler injection is injected as usual but the PRP continues the effect for long term. The PRP is taken from the client's own blood and then mixed with the filler. Once injected in the skin tissues, the growth factors in the PRP begin stimulating the collagen in the injected area, similar to Ellanse and Sculptra. This post on our blog explains this filler in detail.
• Neuramis: This is a hyaluronic filler that uses a special type of technique called SHAPE technology. This uses a 2 step cross-linking which means the reaction step of the procedure takes place twice so more cross links are formed and, again, a more stable gel is formed.