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Nose filler

Hyaluronic acid filler can address a slightly uneven bridge, a drooping tip or a small asymmetry without surgery. It does not make the nose smaller or replace rhinoplasty. The nose is one of the facial areas at greatest risk of blood vessel complications, so a consultation is essential before treatment.

Session

Short: the time goes into the assessment, not the injections

Result

Assessed at the consultation, case by case

Area

Risk of blood vessel complications: consultation required

What it is

I inject small quantities of cross-linked hyaluronic acid at precise points on the bridge and at the base of the tip, to make the nose look more even in profile. It is a gel classified as a medical device and not as a medicine, and it is absorbable.

It can be dissolved: an enzyme, hyaluronidase, dissolves hyaluronic acid, and I keep it ready in the practice at all times. Having hyaluronidase available is particularly important in this area and is one reason I use hyaluronic acid.

It is not a rhinoplasty. I take nothing away: I add product to correct a line. A nose treated with nose filler does not become smaller; at some points, to a minimal degree, it becomes larger.

Who it is for

A mild dorsal hump: I fill above and below it, with the aim of making the line of the profile more regular
A tip that drops and makes the nose look longer
Mild asymmetries of the bridge
A narrow angle between the nose and upper lip

When treatment may not be suitable

If you want a smaller nose. Nose filler does not reduce: it adds. A smaller nose requires a surgical assessment
A deviated septum, a blocked nose, difficulty breathing. These are not problems that filler solves: I refer you to a surgeon or to an ENT specialist
A pronounced hump, a very bulky tip, marked asymmetry: the result would not be proportionate to the risk and to the quantity of product needed, and I prefer to tell you beforehand
Recent rhinoplasty. I do not treat a nose that has just been operated on: the tissues are still healing and the anatomy of the vessels has changed. If surgery took place years ago, I treat only after assessing the operation and internal scarring
Permanent material, or a product whose name you do not know, already injected into the nose. I do not inject on top of it: the risk multiplies and hyaluronidase does not dissolve what is not hyaluronic acid
Infection, lesion or active inflammation in the area; an active cold sore; active autoimmune disease
Clotting or platelet disorders
Anticoagulant or antiplatelet treatment not agreed with your own doctor
Pregnancy and breastfeeding
Allergy to hyaluronic acid or to the lidocaine contained in some products
Under-eighteens: I do not treat them. And I do not treat anyone arriving with a photograph of somebody else's nose

What happens during treatment

A thorough consultation is particularly important before nose filler. I look at the nose from the front and in profile, at the skin, at the thickness of the tissues. I ask you how you breathe, whether you have had operations or injuries, whether anything has already been injected into your nose and what it was. I take the clinical photographs: they stay in your record, I do not publish them. If I do not have the answers I need, I do not inject that day. Before we begin you sign the informed consent form, after I have explained what I can correct and what the risks of the area are.

Then I cleanse and disinfect the skin and apply an anaesthetic cream, which I leave to take effect. I inject deep beneath the skin, generally on the midline, aspirating before every injection, slowly and in very small quantities. I record the batch number of the product in your clinical record: what was used, when and how much stays on file.

The session is short: the time goes into the assessment and the anaesthetic, not the injections. I do not do touch-ups on the same day: I put in less than I could and we look again at the review, which is included in the treatment.

AI-generated illustration. It does not depict a patient or clinical result from the practice.

How long the effect lasts

The product is reabsorbed. How long that takes varies from person to person: it depends on the product, on the quantity and on your metabolism. I tell you at the consultation, once I know what is needed for you; I would rather not write a number here that then does not apply to you.

We assess the result at the review, not in the first few days: the initial swelling is misleading. I do not promise you a result; at the consultation I tell you what you can reasonably expect. If you are unhappy with the result, the filler can be dissolved.

Comfort and recovery

With the anaesthetic cream you feel pressure rather than pain, but the nose is a sensitive area and you will feel each injection: it lasts a few seconds per point.

Afterwards, mild swelling and redness at the injection points, sometimes a small bruise: generally one to three days. In the first few hours the nose may seem fuller to you than it will be.

Aftercare:

Do not press, do not massage, do not touch the nose
No glasses resting on the bridge of the nose, for the days I tell you
No sauna, swimming pool, strenuous exercise for forty-eight hours
No make-up on the area for twenty-four hours; sun protection 50+ every day
No other treatment on the nose until I tell you

When to get help immediately. Unusual or increasing pain, skin turning white, grey or blue, and changes in vision require immediate medical attention. Call 112 for changes in vision or sudden severe symptoms. Let me know, but do not wait for a chat reply before seeking medical care.

Risks and contraindications

Common and expected
Mild swelling, redness at the injection points, small bruises, tenderness to the touch for a few days.

Possible
Residual asymmetry or a small palpable irregularity: I correct it at the review, or I dissolve it with hyaluronidase. Swelling or redness lasting longer than expected. Reactivation of cold sores in those who get them.

Rare
Infection, which requires antibiotics. Hypersensitivity reactions. Late inflammatory nodules, even months later.

The serious complication
Vascular occlusion (a blocked blood vessel): the product enters a vessel or compresses it, and an area of skin is left without blood supply. The nose is the site where this complication is most feared, because blood vessels in the nose connect with the artery supplying the eye. The signs are disproportionate pain, skin that blanches or turns purplish, sometimes a change in your vision. Untreated it can lead to skin necrosis (tissue death) with scarring; in very rare cases the literature describes loss of vision. It is rare, it is not impossible: that is why nose filler is done only after the consultation, and that is why I talk to you about it beforehand.

How I reduce the risk
I know the vascular anatomy of the area and I inject deep beneath the skin. I aspirate before injecting, I inject slowly and in very small quantities, with sterile, single-use equipment. I use a genuine, traceable product and I record the batch number in your clinical record. I keep hyaluronidase ready in the practice. You sign the informed consent form before we begin and I give you in writing what to do and who to call. These measures reduce the risk but cannot eliminate it.

Combining treatments

I assess your nose alongside your chin, jawline and lips. Sometimes another feature is affecting the balance of your profile, and I explain this at your consultation.

I plan each treatment carefully. If more than one thing is needed, I schedule them in separate sessions, spaced out: this helps me assess the effect of each treatment.

Cost

Nose filler does not have a published price: it depends on the product and on the quantity needed for you. I tell you at the first consultation, before we begin, and from there it does not change.

About pricing

Frequently asked questions

Will it make my nose smaller?

No. Nose filler adds product, it does not take any away: it works on the line of the profile, not on the size. If what you want is a smaller nose, surgery is the appropriate route, which I explain at your first consultation.

Can it be dissolved if I am unhappy with the result?

Yes, it can be dissolved: hyaluronic acid is dissolved with hyaluronidase, which I keep ready in the practice at all times. We discuss when to dissolve the filler and how much to remove at your consultation. With permanent materials this is not possible: it is one of the reasons I do not use them and do not inject on top of them.

Can I have nose filler after nose surgery?

It depends, and it has to be assessed in person. I do not treat a nose soon after rhinoplasty. If surgery took place years ago, I first need to understand the operation: the internal scarring changes the circulation of the area and with it the risk.

Booking an appointment

At the consultation I look at your nose from the front and in profile, take your medical history and tell you whether nose filler is suitable for you. If the case is one for surgery, I tell you so and refer you.

Tell me what you'd like to improveI reply personally with information about your first consultation.