Flatter or more hollow-looking cheeks
Profhilo Structura in Hale, Altrincham
Profhilo Structura helps restore the natural support beneath cheeks that have become flatter or more hollow. It works with the fatty layer under your skin, helping bring back some of your face's familiar softness and shape.
Perhaps your cheeks look flatter than they used to, or there's a hollow at the side of your face that catches your eye in photos. You want to look a little more like yourself again.
Structura is an injectable treatment designed to restore ageing facial fat - the soft layer that helps give your cheeks their shape. It uses specially formulated hyaluronic acid to work within that tissue. It isn't a conventional dermal filler used to sculpt a cheekbone or fill an individual line.
The aim is a gradual, natural-looking improvement in cheek shape. Dr Alex will look at what has changed and explain whether Structura would be a good fit.
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With Dr Alex, who presented on Profhilo and Profhilo Structura at CCR on behalf of IBSA.
What looks different?
When your cheeks seem to have lost some shape
The change may be a hollow, a flatter cheek or a fold that has become more noticeable beside it.
Your cheeks look flatter
The sides of your face look hollow
Your face changed after losing weight
The practical details
Profhilo Structura at a glance
Two appointments are usually recommended to start, with the result building gradually over the following weeks.
The change you can see
Cheeks that look a little more like they used to
Structura can soften cheek hollowing and help restore the gentle curve across the side of your face.
You might notice that a dip beside your cheekbone looks less obvious, or that your cheeks have regained some of their softness. Folds beside the cheeks can also look softer as the surrounding area becomes better supported.
The aim is to recover some of your familiar shape. You may love your cheekbones and simply want the hollow underneath to look less pronounced. That is the kind of detail Dr Alex will want to understand.
The improvement develops gradually over the weeks after treatment, giving the result time to settle into the rest of your face.
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Would this suit you?
What is making your cheeks look different?
Dr Alex will consider the skin, the fat beneath it and the overall facial shape, including any existing filler.
The limits of treatment
It won't lift away a heavy jowl
Structura can't remove excess skin or reliably reproduce a surgical lift. If the lower face is already heavy, adding treatment without understanding why may disappoint.
Dr Alex will explain how much of the change comes from hollowing and how much comes from loose skin. If you want a more substantial lift than injections can offer, a surgical opinion may be more useful.
How it works
Working with the natural padding beneath your skin
The fatty layer under your skin helps give your face its softness and shape. As it changes with age, cheeks can look flatter and hollows can become more obvious.
Structura is placed into this layer, where its specially formulated hyaluronic acid spreads and integrates with the surrounding tissue. It's designed to help restore ageing facial fat, improving the support beneath the skin and the shape of the cheek above it.
The shared ingredient can be confusing: hyaluronic acid is also used in many fillers, but the formulation and the job it does are different. Conventional filler can add volume in a chosen place or define a feature. Structura works across the existing fatty tissue to give a softer, broader improvement.
Original Profhilo works on the skin itself, encouraging hydration, collagen and elastin. Structura's focus is the layer beneath it. Dr Alex will explain which part of your face needs attention rather than expect one product to do every job.
Your appointment
Look at the cheek change before choosing the product
Mention any recent weight loss, previous filler or treatment that didn't give you the result you expected.
Assess the face and your priorities
Compare the options
Treat the selected cheek area
Review the developing result
Why Dr Alex
Why choose Dr Alex for Profhilo Structura?
Dr Alex has presented on Profhilo and Profhilo Structura at CCR on behalf of IBSA. He has also used Profhilo extensively, been a trainer for it and helped launch Profhilo Body.
His experience across the range helps him explain the differences in terms that matter to your face. Crinkly skin with a good cheek shape calls for a different approach from a cheek that has become hollow. If you already have filler, he'll assess that too before recommending anything more.
He'll ask what you'd like to bring back and what you'd like to keep. Softening a hollow while leaving a cheekbone just as it is can be a very different goal from wanting more prominent cheeks.
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Safety and recovery
What should you know before treatment?
Tenderness, redness, bruising and swelling can occur. The cheeks may look or feel different while the area settles.
Possible side effects
Persistent lumps or swelling, unevenness, infection and inflammatory or allergic reactions are possible. Contact SONÜ if a change is worsening or continues beyond the recovery advice you've been given.
As with other facial HA injections, an uncommon but serious risk is blockage of a blood vessel. This can damage skin and, very rarely, affect vision or cause a stroke. A cannula does not remove that risk.
When to get urgent help
Contact SONÜ immediately if you develop unusual or increasing pain, pale skin, or a dusky or mottled colour around the treated area. Don't wait for a routine review. If you can't reach the clinic, seek urgent medical care.
Any change in vision, sudden weakness or difficulty speaking needs emergency medical help. Call 999 and tell them you've recently had hyaluronic acid injections.
When treatment may be unsuitable
Structura is not used during pregnancy or breastfeeding, with an allergy to its ingredients, or in infected or inflamed skin. The manufacturer also advises against use in people with autoimmune disease.
Tell Dr Alex about your medical history, medicines and previous injections or surgery. Laser resurfacing and medium or deep peels must be planned separately rather than carried out alongside treatment.
You can compare the options and take time to decide before having treatment.
Treatment costs
How much does Profhilo Structura cost?
Profhilo Structura costs £350 per session, the same as Profhilo. A usual initial course of two sessions costs £700.
Your questions
Questions about Profhilo Structura
Including how it differs from filler, natural-looking results and what to expect after treatment.
Is it just a stronger version of Profhilo?
Will the result look natural?
Would it suit my face after weight loss?
How is it different from cheek filler?
Will it lift my jowls?
How many treatments will I need?
When will I see the finished result?
How long does it last?
Can I have it if I already have filler?
Can I return to work afterwards?
Compare the options
Profhilo, Structura or conventional filler?
Original Profhilo focuses on skin quality. Midface and cheek filler can restore volume or define shape more directly, while a full-face assessment considers several areas together. If skin looseness is the main issue, Dr Alex can discuss skin-tightening options and their limits.
Your next step
Wondering what would help your cheeks?
Book a consultation with Dr Alex at SONÜ in Hale, Altrincham. He'll look at the hollowing or change in cheek shape you've noticed, explain where Structura could help and compare it with the other options.
SONÜ Medical Aesthetics
34 Hale Road, Hale, Altrincham, WA14 2EX
Doctor-led treatment in a relaxed, private clinic
Close to Hale station and easy to reach from Altrincham, Manchester and Cheshire