Collagen Stimulators

Skin quality

Collagen stimulation for firmer skin

Sculptra in Hale, Altrincham

Sculptra stimulates your own collagen to improve skin firmness, soften fine creases and help with mild looseness, with results that develop gradually.

Your skin might not feel as firm as it used to. Perhaps your cheeks look more creased, or the skin around your lower face has started to look a little loose. Sculptra encourages your body to make more collagen, helping the skin feel firmer and look smoother over the following months.

Dr Alex uses it primarily to improve firmness, mild laxity and overall skin quality. It can also restore some volume where that's helpful, but making your face fuller doesn't have to be the reason for treatment. The aim is healthier-looking, firmer skin that still looks like you.

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Doctor-led assessment with Dr Alex at SONÜ, with the treatment chosen around your face and the change you want.

Book a consultation Learn more
Treatment
Collagen-stimulating injections
Results
Build over a few months
Course
Usually several sessions
Duration
Can last around 2 years

What you've noticed

Your skin doesn't feel quite as firm

It may be a change in how your skin feels when you apply moisturiser, or the fine creases you notice in the mirror.

Your skin feels less springy

The skin on your cheeks or lower face may feel softer and look a little looser than before. You'd like it to feel firmer without changing the shape of your face dramatically.

There are more fine creases

Your cheeks may look more crinkly, even when your face is relaxed. You'd like smoother-looking skin, rather than simply filling each little line.

Some areas also look flatter

You may have lost a little cheek volume alongside those skin changes. Sculptra can help with that too, so Dr Alex considers whether some gradual volume restoration would improve the overall result.

At a glance

What to expect from Sculptra

Sculptra is planned as a gradual course, with time between appointments to assess how you're responding.

Treatment
Collagen-stimulating injections
Sculptra encourages your own collagen production to improve firmness and skin quality.
Results
Build over a few months
The early fullness after injections includes fluid and swelling; it isn't the finished result.
Course
Usually several sessions
Around three sessions is a common guide; Dr Alex will recommend a course for your face.
Duration
Can last around 2 years
Longevity varies, and maintenance is considered according to the result and your needs.
Recovery
Swelling and bruising possible
Tenderness and injection marks can also occur; allow some flexibility around important plans.

The result

Firmer skin with a smoother, less creased appearance

Sculptra can improve firmness and mild skin laxity, soften cheek wrinkles and gradually improve skin quality.

As collagen builds, the skin gains more support. That can help cheeks that look finely creased or skin that has started to feel a little loose. Where volume has also been lost, the same gradual response can restore some of it.

Dr Alex plans the areas and amount around what would help your face. Firmer skin may be your main goal; extra volume is useful when it contributes to the result you want.

✓

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Improved skin firmness as your own collagen develops.

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A modest improvement in mild looseness.

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Softer cheek creases and smoother-looking skin.

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Gradual restoration of lost volume where it would help.

Is it right for you?

Does a gradual approach suit what you want?

Sculptra is worth considering if your skin has become less firm or more creased and you'd like a gradual improvement in its quality.

Your skin has started to feel looser
It may help mild laxity - the early looseness you notice in the cheeks or lower face. Dr Alex will check whether collagen stimulation is likely to give the improvement you're looking for.
You can give the result time
A course over several appointments may suit you if you're comfortable waiting a few months for the change. An imminent wedding or holiday needs a different timing discussion.
You want to compare your options
Firmness, dryness and a loss of cheek volume can overlap, but they aren't the same concern. Dr Alex will explain whether Sculptra, a skin booster or a more targeted filler treatment would be most useful.

A useful boundary

How much tightening are you hoping for?

Sculptra can help mild looseness, but it won't remove excess skin or produce the lift of surgery. If the skin is substantially loose or sagging, Dr Alex will explain why another approach may be more useful.

How Sculptra works

Encouraging your skin to make more collagen

Sculptra contains tiny particles of poly-L-lactic acid, or PLLA, suspended in fluid for injection.

The PLLA encourages your body to produce collagen, giving the skin more support and helping improve its firmness and texture. This response can also add volume, which is useful when part of the face has become flatter. The material itself is gradually broken down by the body.

The result develops over time. Early fullness after injections includes fluid and swelling; that settles before the slower collagen change becomes apparent. It's the later improvement in your skin that you're waiting for.

Your appointment

A course with time to review the change

Dr Alex will explain where treatment could help, the likely number of visits and the cost before you decide.

At consultation

Talk through what has changed

He'll assess skin firmness, fine creases, areas of looseness and any loss of volume, alongside your medical history and previous treatments. Tell him what you've noticed and which change you'd most like to improve.
Before treatment

Agree where to treat

You'll discuss the proposed areas, likely course and alternatives. The plan includes time to assess the developing result rather than deciding every future injection in advance.
During treatment

Have the selected areas treated

Sculptra is placed in the appropriate areas using an injection technique suited to your face. Local anaesthetic can help with comfort, although you may still feel pressure, stinging or tenderness.
After treatment

Follow aftercare and let the result develop

You'll receive instructions about massage and caring for the treated areas. Reviews allow Dr Alex to assess the change and decide whether further treatment is useful before continuing the course.

Why Dr Alex

Why choose Dr Alex for Sculptra?

For Dr Alex, Sculptra is primarily a way to improve firmness, mild laxity and skin quality. He looks at how the skin has changed, as well as whether any loss of volume is contributing to what you see.

His experience includes previous work as a trainer and medical advisory-board member for LanLuma, another PLLA collagen stimulator. He uses that understanding to explain what a gradual collagen treatment could add to your care.

He'll distinguish skin that needs more support from a hollow that needs filling. Sometimes both matter. The plan should reflect that, so improving your skin doesn't become an exercise in making your face bigger.

GMC-registered doctor · 7072776

Full Member of BCAM

International toxin trainer

Aesthetics Awards winner 2021

Side effects and suitability

What should you know before treatment?

Swelling, bruising, tenderness, redness and small injection marks are possible after Sculptra.

Possible side effects

Lumps or nodules, unevenness, infection and inflammatory reactions can occur, including reactions that appear later. Some need further treatment. Sculptra cannot be dissolved with hyaluronidase, the enzyme used for hyaluronic acid filler.

An uncommon but serious complication is an injection blocking a blood vessel. This can damage the skin and, very rarely, cause sight loss or a stroke. Dr Alex will explain the risks relevant to the proposed treatment before you decide.

When to get urgent help

Contact SONÜ immediately for unusual or increasing pain, or skin turning pale, grey, dusky or mottled. Seek urgent medical care if you cannot reach the clinic. For any change in vision, sudden weakness or difficulty speaking, call 999 and mention the Sculptra treatment. Spreading redness, increasing swelling or fever also need prompt medical advice.

When treatment may need to wait

Tell Dr Alex about medicines, autoimmune conditions, previous facial treatments and any history of raised or excessive scarring. Sculptra is not suitable if you have an allergy to its ingredients or a history of severe allergic reactions such as anaphylaxis. Treatment is not offered during pregnancy or breastfeeding, and active infection or inflammation needs to settle first.

You can take time to consider the recommendation before going ahead.

Treatment costs

How much does Sculptra cost?

As a guide, facial Sculptra treatment is approximately £900 per session. Dr Alex will confirm the amount of product, number of sessions and total cost after assessment.

Facial Sculptra treatment
Agreed at consultationfor your agreed treatment plan
Dr Alex will confirm the amount of product, number of sessions and total cost after assessment.
A consultation with Dr Alex costs £75. If you choose to have treatment within 3 months of your consultation, you can put this fee towards it, including at a later appointment. It cannot be used towards skincare products. If you decide not to have treatment, the fee covers your consultation.
Book a consultation
Your quote will explain what each session includes and any consultation fee separately, before you decide to go ahead.

Your questions

More about choosing Sculptra

A few practical differences can help you decide whether a gradual collagen treatment suits you.

Is Sculptra a filler?
It's often grouped with fillers, but it works differently from a conventional hyaluronic acid gel filler. Sculptra stimulates collagen to improve firmness, mild looseness and skin quality over time. It can also restore volume. Hyaluronic acid filler is more often chosen for an immediate, targeted change in shape or volume.
How is it different from Profhilo?
Both can improve skin quality. Profhilo is often chosen when hydration is a priority; Sculptra may be useful when you're looking for a gradual improvement in firmness and mild looseness, with volume restoration where needed. Dr Alex will explain which best suits the skin changes you've noticed.
Will it make my face look puffy?
Some temporary swelling is possible after injections. The longer-term aim is firmer, smoother-looking skin, with any added volume planned carefully. Sculptra can add volume even when skin quality is your main goal, so Dr Alex takes that into account when choosing the areas and amount.
How many sessions will I need?
Several sessions are usually needed, often around three spread over a few months. The number depends on the starting point and the improvement you're looking for. Dr Alex will explain the likely course and review your response before recommending more.
When will I see the result?
The collagen change builds over weeks and months. The fuller appearance immediately after treatment includes fluid and swelling, which can settle before the lasting result becomes visible. Give it the review time Dr Alex recommends rather than judging it in the first few days.
How long does Sculptra last?
The improvement can last around two years, although the duration varies. Your face continues to change with age and weight, so maintenance is discussed according to what you notice and what Dr Alex finds at review, rather than treating on an automatic schedule.
Can Sculptra help loose or sagging skin?
It can help mild laxity by stimulating collagen and improving skin support. That may suit cheeks or a lower face starting to look a little loose. More substantial sagging or excess skin needs a different discussion; Sculptra doesn't recreate a surgical lift.
Can it be used in lips or directly under the eyes?
Sculptra isn't used for lip enlargement or direct treatment around the eyes. Those areas need a different assessment and, where treatment is appropriate, a different approach. Mention them at consultation so Dr Alex can explain the options without treating everything as one problem.
Will I need to massage my face?
You'll receive specific massage instructions as part of your aftercare. Follow the advice given for your treatment, and contact the clinic if you develop an unusual lump, increasing pain or anything else that concerns you. Don't assume a new or painful lump simply needs more massage.
Can Sculptra be dissolved?
No. Hyaluronidase dissolves hyaluronic acid filler, not Sculptra. Although the PLLA material is gradually broken down by the body, that isn't the same as being able to reverse the result at an appointment. A lump or unwanted change needs an individual assessment.

Related treatments

Compare treatments that do different jobs

Profhilo and polynucleotides are other options for skin quality, while HIFU or RF microneedling may be relevant when firmness is the main concern. Cheek or midface filler can offer a more immediate, targeted change where volume has been lost. Dr Alex will explain which approach fits your skin.

Profhilo in Hale, Altrincham

Improve hydration and fine crinkling in suitable face or neck skin with Profhilo.

Polynucleotides in Hale, Altrincham

Improve hydration, elasticity and crepey texture with polynucleotide injections, including treatment for delicate skin around the eyes.

HIFU skin tightening in Hale, Altrincham

Feeling jowly or noticing sagging skin? Explore HIFU with Dr Alex for firmer skin and a more defined jawline, usually without downtime.

Your next step

Talk through the changes you've noticed

Book an assessment with Dr Alex at SONÜ in Hale, Altrincham. He'll look at the changes in your skin's firmness and texture, explain whether Sculptra could help, and talk through the likely course and cost.

Book a consultation Contact the clinic
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