Dr. Sam Lam Plastic Surgery Forum

Dr. Lam,
Can you perform TCA Cross after a temporary filler like restylane or juvederm is put into your skin?

Thanks

not if the filler is placed in the adjacent area to the cross. the concern is that if you inject filler and there are little holes in the skin and then cross is applied, the cross may drip through the hole and cause too much skin injury. you would have to do the cross first before the filler or do them on separate days.

Dr. Lam
If you put in a temporary filler first how long do you have to wait until you perform cross treatments? Do you have to wait until the temporary filler is dissolved or after a couple weeks you can begin cross treatments?

Thanks

as i explained the key is just so that the cross does not drip into a needle stick from the filler which can lead to overtreatment. if you do the cross first, then you can do the filler at the same time. if you do the filler first, then you could wait a day to do the cross. however, if the cross and the filler are in the exact same area then doing filler the next day in the area of cross is not a smart idea because the cross area is in a process of healing and also there can be swelling to obscure the ability to read things.

however, i almost never do cross and filler in the exact same locations of the face because fillers are like silicone and are for bigger holes and cross is for smaller holes. therefore, if that is the case and you want both done the same time and they do not overlap the exact same parts of the face, i would do the cross first followed by the filler immediately afterward at the same setting.