Dermal Filler Guide: Types, Areas, and What to Expect

Who Filler Is Best For — and When It Is Not the Answer

Filler works best for patients dealing with volume loss, structural asymmetry, or features they would like to gently enhance. The most common concerns that respond well to filler include lips that have lost definition or fullness, cheeks that have flattened or dropped, a jawline that has softened, nasolabial folds that have deepened, under-eye hollowing (tear trough), a chin that lacks projection, and temples that appear hollow. These are all areas where adding or restoring volume creates a meaningful, proportional improvement that looks like the face at its best — not like a different face.

Filler is not the right tool for every concern, and at RELUXE, providers will tell you so directly. Dynamic wrinkles — lines created by muscle movement, like forehead lines, crow's feet, and the lines between the brows — are better addressed with wrinkle relaxers like Botox or Dysport. Filler placed in those areas does not fix the underlying muscle activity and can look unnatural over time. Similarly, patients dealing with loose or sagging skin may see more meaningful improvement from a treatment like Morpheus8 that addresses tissue laxity at depth, either instead of filler or in combination with it. The consultation is the right place to figure out which approach makes sense for your specific anatomy and goals.

There are also patients for whom filler is not appropriate right now. If you are pregnant or nursing, have an active skin infection or open wound in the treatment area, or have had certain dental procedures within the past two weeks, your provider will ask you to wait. Patients with certain autoimmune conditions or bleeding disorders should discuss their medical history in detail before proceeding. A thorough intake and consultation protects both the result and your safety.

The Filler Brands at RELUXE — and What Each One Does Best

RELUXE carries four filler brand families: Juvéderm, Restylane, RHA, and Revanesse Versa. These are not interchangeable products. Each has a distinct gel formulation, stiffness profile, and behavior in the tissue — and that matters significantly when the goal is a natural, well-integrated result. Your provider selects the product for each area based on the specific tissue characteristics of that zone, the degree of correction needed, and how much movement the area sees during expression.

Juvéderm is one of the most established HA filler families and excels in structural applications. Juvéderm Voluma XC provides strong lift in the cheeks and midface. Juvéderm Volux XC is purpose-built for jawline definition and chin sculpting, with a firmer gel that holds its shape well under pressure. Juvéderm Vollure XC is well-suited for nasolabial folds and marionette lines. Juvéderm Volbella XC works in areas requiring subtle refinement, such as light lip work or vertical lip lines. Across the family, Juvéderm products are known for their smooth integration and long duration in the right areas.

Restylane offers a similarly broad range. Restylane Lyft provides volume and support in the cheeks and midface with a firmer feel. Restylane Contour is designed specifically for natural-looking cheek enhancement that moves well with expression. Restylane Kysse is formulated for the lips — it integrates softly into lip tissue and maintains flexibility, which is why many providers prefer it for natural lip results. Restylane Defyne handles deeper dynamic expression lines, particularly around the chin and jawline.

RHA (Resilient Hyaluronic Acid) is a newer generation of filler designed to withstand movement. Traditional HA fillers can look stiff or uneven in areas that experience a lot of expression — the lips and perioral region in particular. RHA fillers use a gentler manufacturing process that preserves longer HA chains, resulting in a gel that flexes and adapts with facial movement rather than resisting it. RHA 1 and 2 handle finer lines and lips. RHA 3 and 4 address deeper folds and structural areas. For patients who spend a lot of time speaking or making animated expressions, RHA may produce a more seamless result in the perioral area.

Revanesse Versa is a value-positioned HA filler that works well for lips and nasolabial folds. It is a solid option for patients new to filler who want to start conservatively with strong product at an accessible price point. At $650 per syringe, it is the entry point in the RELUXE filler menu.

The takeaway is that your provider is not simply choosing "which filler brand to use" — they are matching a specific product to each specific zone of the face, based on the tissue characteristics of that area and how you as an individual move and express. That precision is what makes the difference between filler that looks integrated and filler that looks placed.

Common Treatment Areas: What to Expect by Zone

Lips are the area most patients think of first when they think of filler — and also the area patients are most nervous about. The fear of ending up with disproportionate lips is valid, because poorly placed lip filler is noticeable in a way that poorly placed cheek filler is not. At RELUXE, lip work starts with an honest conversation about your anatomy and goals. Most patients who want "natural-looking fuller lips" need far less product than they expect — often half a syringe to one syringe — and the emphasis is always on proportional enhancement rather than maximum volume. Lips also have the most post-treatment swelling of any filler area, which is worth knowing before your appointment. The day-of and day-after result is not the final result. Most patients assess their lip filler properly at the two-week mark.

Cheeks and the midface are where filler tends to produce some of the most impactful structural improvements. Volume loss in the cheeks flattens the face and can contribute to the appearance of nasolabial folds and jowling by removing the structural support that holds the overlying tissue in place. Restoring cheek volume with a product like Voluma or Restylane Lyft lifts the midface and can improve multiple downstream concerns with a single area of treatment. Most patients need one to two syringes per side depending on the degree of volume loss. Results in the cheeks tend to last longer than in higher-movement areas — often 12 to 18 months.

The jawline and chin are increasingly requested areas, particularly among patients who want more facial definition without the commitment of surgery. Filler placed along the jawline creates a cleaner line from the ear to the chin. Chin filler can improve projection and bring the lower face into better proportion with the mid and upper face — a change that often reads as more balanced overall without any single feature looking dramatically different. Juvéderm Volux XC was designed specifically for this structural application and holds its shape well in areas that require firmness.

Under-eye hollowing — the tear trough — is one of the most technically nuanced filler areas. Placed correctly, a small amount of filler under the eye reduces the shadowing that creates a tired, hollow appearance. The skin here is very thin and the anatomy is precise, which is why this area requires significant injector experience. At RELUXE, tear trough treatment is approached conservatively and is always assessed case by case during consultation. Not every patient is a candidate, and in some cases a different treatment approach may be recommended instead.

Temples are less commonly discussed but worth knowing about. Hollow temples can make the face appear gaunt or aged regardless of what is happening in the central face. A small amount of filler in the temporal area restores facial fullness and improves the overall oval shape of the face. Nasolabial folds — the lines running from the nose to the corners of the mouth — respond well to filler placed in both the fold itself and in the cheek above it. Treating only the fold without addressing the cheek structure above it often produces a less satisfying result than treating both areas together.

What to Expect During Your Appointment and Recovery

A filler appointment at RELUXE typically runs 60 to 90 minutes from start to finish. The first portion is a consultation — even for returning patients — where you and your provider review your goals, assess the areas being treated, and confirm the product plan. Photos are taken before treatment begins, both for your record and to support symmetry planning during the appointment itself. A topical numbing cream is applied and given time to take full effect before any injection begins.

The injection itself is methodical. Your provider works through each area in a deliberate sequence, using either a needle or a cannula depending on the location and technique required. Most modern HA fillers contain lidocaine pre-mixed into the gel, which provides progressive numbing as product is placed. Most patients rate the experience around a three or four out of ten for discomfort. Lip filler is typically the most sensitive area; structural areas like cheeks and jawline tend to be more tolerable. Your provider will check in with you throughout.

Immediately after your appointment, expect some swelling and possibly mild bruising. Swelling is most pronounced in the first 24 to 48 hours and is most noticeable in the lips, which can swell significantly in the first day before settling down. Bruising, if it occurs, typically resolves within five to ten days. Plan to avoid intense exercise for 24 hours, alcohol the day of treatment, and direct heat (saunas, steam rooms) for 48 hours. Most patients return to normal daily activities the same day.

The two-week mark is when your provider will invite you back for a complimentary check-in. This is when swelling is fully resolved and the product has settled into its final position. It is also the right time to assess whether a small touch-up would be beneficial, or whether the result is exactly where you want it. RELUXE builds this follow-up into the filler experience because results should be assessed when they are actually finished — not while the tissue is still adjusting.

Results, Duration, and Long-Term Maintenance

Filler results vary by area, product, and individual metabolism. As a general framework: lip filler typically lasts 6 to 12 months, cheek and midface filler 12 to 18 months, and jawline or chin filler 12 to 18 months with some products lasting toward the longer end. Under-eye filler duration varies widely by patient. These ranges reflect typical experience — individual results depend on how your body metabolizes hyaluronic acid, how active the treated area is, your lifestyle, and how much product was placed.

Hyaluronic acid fillers are temporary and fully reversible. HA breaks down naturally over time as the body absorbs it, which is why maintenance appointments are part of any long-term filler plan. The reversibility is also a meaningful safety consideration: if a result is not what you hoped for, or if there is a complication, HA filler can be dissolved quickly and safely with an enzyme called hyaluronidase. This is one of the most important reasons RELUXE uses HA fillers as the primary offering — the ability to correct course if needed.

Many patients fall into a comfortable annual or semi-annual maintenance rhythm. Rather than waiting until results have fully worn off, the better approach is a maintenance touch-up before the product has completely metabolized — keeping the volume consistent rather than cycling between full and depleted. Over time, patients often find they need slightly less product per visit to maintain the same result, because some of the structural support from prior sessions persists in the collagen response of the tissue. Your provider will track your history and recommend the maintenance schedule that makes sense for your goals and the areas being treated.

RELUXE VIP members receive savings on every syringe, which makes ongoing maintenance meaningfully more cost-effective. Cherry financing is also available for patients who prefer to manage the cost of a larger treatment plan over time. Both options are worth asking about at your consultation.