Bruising is a part of the body's natural reaction to injuries, particularly if the skin is punctured or cut open. It can also occur in response to certain disorders, particularly those related to circulation or blood flow. The bruise will often start out red, turn black and blue, and then to green and yellow as it begins to heal. Depending upon the severity of the bruise, it may also be tender to the touch.

In terms of cosmetic procedures, most patients associate bruising with more invasive surgical procedures such as facelift or tummy tuck procedures, and they would be correct to a certain degree. However, even minor procedures, such as facial injectable treatments, can lead to bruising. Below, Dr. Pin offers some tips for what to expect in terms of bruising after facial injections, as well as how to shorten the duration and amount of bruising.

Facial Injectable Treatments

Facial injectables are designed to minimize the appearance of fine lines around the mouth, lower nose, and outer corners of the eyes (dermal fillers), and wrinkles between the brows (BOTOX® Cosmetic). This is done by either filling in the fine lines where collagen (a protein that the body naturally forms to fill out the body over the skeletal framework) has been lost or relaxing the facial muscles that cause wrinkles. Dermal fillers are injected just under the skin, while BOTOX® Cosmetic is injected slightly deeper to reach the underlying facial muscles.

Mechanism of Bruising

Whenever there is soft tissue damage, tiny veins (known as capillaries) are ruptured. As the blood seeps out of these capillaries, it flows toward the surface of the skin, causing a bruise. This can also happen at injection sites, in which the blood attempts to fill in the injection site and clot. This process often will leave a bruise surrounding the injection site.

What to Expect

Although bruising from facial injectable treatments is nowhere near as severe from more invasive procedures, such as breast augmentation or tummy tuck, there may be bruising for at least one to two weeks after the procedure. Dr. Pin recommends keeping this time period in mind if you have any big events coming up, such as getting married, so that your bruising will be fully healed.

The amount and location of the bruising will depend on which areas of the face were treated, as well as if dermal fillers or BOTOX® Cosmetic were used. You should also keep in mind that the greater the amount of work, the more bruising will occur, as well as the fact that BOTOX® Cosmetic may cause more bruising than dermal fillers, as it is injected somewhat deeper into the face.

Once the injection sites have fully healed over, you can apply ice or cold compresses to reduce the amount and duration of bruising. Taking the herb Arnica montana will also help. Makeup can also camouflage the bruising. Dr. Pin recommends also stopping any aspirin, alcohol, or tobacco use starting at least three weeks prior to any facial injections, as these can increase bleeding, which in turn will increase bruising.

Facial injectables can make you look younger and more refreshed. With some easy care steps to reduce the amount and duration of bruising, you should have optimal results.