Sculptra®
For a face that looks firmer and fuller without looking done. Sculptra works quietly, prompting your own collagen over a short course of treatments, so the change builds gradually and lasts.
Sculptra®, by Galderma
Sculptra is poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA), a biodegradable collagen stimulator made by Galderma, one of the world’s leading dermatology companies. At Wellface, every Sculptra treatment is planned and injected by one of our doctors.
Collagen, rebuilt from within
Sculptra contains poly-L-lactic acid, a biodegradable material that prompts your skin to lay down its own collagen. Rather than filling a single line or hollow, it strengthens the foundation across a wider area, so the result looks diffuse and natural: firmer, fuller skin that is hard to pinpoint.
A course planned by your doctor
Every Sculptra treatment starts with a consultation with one of our doctors. We look at your facial structure, your skin and any previous treatments, agree how much change you want, and plan how many vials and sessions that is likely to take. Galderma describes a typical course of around three sessions over several months; yours is planned around you.
On the day, Sculptra is placed in the agreed areas, usually in about 45 minutes. Any fullness straight afterwards is fluid and swelling, and it settles; the real change builds as your collagen responds. Review appointments let your doctor judge the true result before deciding whether you need more.
Is Sculptra right for you?
Sculptra suits adults who want gradual support for facial volume loss and firmer-looking skin, and who are happy to let it build. It is not a lip treatment, and because it is not hyaluronic acid it cannot be dissolved like a filler. If you would like a visible change on the day, your doctor may suggest HArmonyCa or dermal fillers instead.
Your doctor may prescribe a simple massage routine, commonly five minutes, five times a day, for five days. Swelling, tenderness, bruising and redness can occur and settle; lumps or nodules can develop later. As with any facial injectable, rare vascular complications are possible, and our doctors work to strict safety and emergency protocols.
How Sculptra works
Most injectables work by adding something: volume where it has been lost, or a lift where skin has softened. Sculptra works differently. It is a regenerative biostimulator, which means it prompts your skin to rebuild its own support, so the result is your own tissue rather than a product sitting under the skin.
Galderma describes it as working across all three layers of the skin, re-engaging the skin’s natural renewal process and stimulating both collagen and elastin. Here is what happens after a treatment.
Placed with precision
Your doctor places Sculptra’s microparticles of poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA) in the deeper layers of the skin, in the areas you agreed at consultation.
Recognised by your skin
Your skin recognises the microparticles and responds with a gentle, controlled healing response that re-engages its natural renewal process.
Collagen and elastin rebuilt
Fibroblasts, the cells that make collagen, go to work. In Galderma’s studies, type I collagen, the collagen most closely linked to skin ageing, increased by 66.5% at three months.
Renewed from within
Over the following months the PLLA is naturally broken down and absorbed by the body, leaving your own new collagen and elastin behind. That is why the result looks like you, only firmer.
Ageing happens in three layers
Skin ages from the inside out. Time slows the skin’s own renewal, and sun exposure, pollution and lifestyle speed it up. Each layer of the skin changes in its own way, which is why one quick fix rarely answers everything.
The epidermis
With age the outer layer thins and skin quality declines: less radiance, a rougher texture, finer lines.
The dermis
Collagen and elastin production slow, so skin loses firmness and spring. Galderma notes that from our twenties collagen falls by around 1% a year.
The hypodermis
The deepest layer loses structural support, which shows as overall volume loss and, over time, sagging.
Because Sculptra stimulates collagen and elastin rather than simply filling, Galderma describes its effect across all three: better skin quality at the surface, firmness and elasticity in the dermis, and renewed structural support beneath, which helps delay the natural course of sagging.
A well-understood material
Sculptra’s active ingredient is poly-L-lactic acid, a biocompatible material that the body breaks down naturally. It is far from new: PLLA has been used in medicine since the 1960s, and in dissolvable stitches since the 1970s.
Sculptra itself was first approved in Europe in 1999 and is now used in more than 40 countries. Galderma’s current formulation, PLLA-SCA™, is plant-based.
Prepared for you
Each vial holds a freeze-dried powder of PLLA microparticles. Your doctor mixes it with sterile water before your appointment, so it can be placed smoothly and evenly.
Sculptra is not a lip treatment, and because it is not hyaluronic acid it cannot be dissolved like a filler. That is why every Sculptra treatment at Wellface is planned and placed by a doctor.
Inside the science, from Galderma
From consultation to lasting results
Sculptra is a course rather than a single appointment, and the results are designed to arrive quietly. This is what to expect.
Consultation
A doctor assesses your face, skin and history, explains whether Sculptra suits you, and plans how many vials and sessions your goals need.
First session
Around 45 minutes. Any fullness afterwards is fluid and swelling that settles within days; your doctor may prescribe a short massage routine.
The course
Typically about three sessions over a few months, each building on the last. Your doctor reviews you between sessions and adjusts the plan.
Results build
Change develops gradually as new collagen forms, so friends notice you look well rather than different.
Lasting
Galderma reports results that last more than two years. A maintenance session can be discussed when your doctor reviews you.
Sculptra results over 12 months
Before and 12 months after a course of Sculptra, from Galderma’s clinical photography. These are Galderma’s images, not Wellface patients, and individual results vary.
What patients say
In a Galderma survey of patients two years after Sculptra treatment:
said their results looked natural
think they look younger
feel better about themselves
feel more confident
Figures from Galderma’s patient survey, two years after treatment. Individual results vary.
Sculptra, Radiesse, HArmonyCa or filler?
They can sound alike, but they work in different ways and suit different goals. Many plans combine them, and your doctor will recommend what suits your face rather than what is newest.
Sculptra
Poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA), a biostimulator
No: the change builds gradually
Stimulates your own collagen and elastin across all three skin layers
More than two years (Galderma)
Radiesse
Calcium hydroxylapatite in a gel
Some immediate support
Support where placed, then new collagen around the microspheres
Can last well over a year
HArmonyCa
Hyaluronic acid with calcium hydroxylapatite
Yes: an immediate lift
Lift from hyaluronic acid, collagen from calcium hydroxylapatite
Varies by area and person
Dermal filler
Hyaluronic acid
Yes
Adds volume exactly where it is placed; can be dissolved
Many months to a couple of years
Pricing
Sculptra is priced per vial. How many you need depends on the areas treated and the change you want, and your doctor plans this with you at consultation. Additional vials are discounted from the fourth vial onwards.
Consultation + review included at every clinic
Where Sculptra is used
Frequently asked questions
Sculptra is an injectable collagen stimulator made by Galderma. It contains poly-L-lactic acid, which prompts your skin to produce its own collagen, gradually restoring volume and firmness.
Not in the usual sense. The fullness straight after treatment is fluid and swelling, which settles. The result builds over weeks and months as your own collagen responds.
Galderma describes a typical course of around three sessions over several months, but it is personalised. Your doctor plans the number of sessions and vials with you at consultation.
Results can last around two years, and studies have followed patients for about 25 months. Everyone responds differently, so your doctor reviews your result before suggesting any maintenance.
£500 per vial. Your doctor plans how many vials you need at consultation, and additional vials are discounted from the fourth vial onwards. Your consultation and review are included.
Your doctor may prescribe a short massage routine, commonly five minutes, five times a day, for five days. Avoid strong sun while any redness and swelling settle.
No. Sculptra is not a lip treatment. If your lips are part of your plan, your doctor will suggest a suitable alternative.
Only our doctors. Sculptra is available at our Cobham, Esher and Wimbledon clinics, with a consultation first and a review included.
Poly-L-lactic acid, a biocompatible material the body breaks down naturally. It has been used in medicine since the 1960s, including in dissolvable stitches, and it is the active ingredient in Sculptra.
Yes. Galderma describes Sculptra as stimulating both collagen and elastin, and its studies show type I collagen increased by 66.5% at three months.
Sculptra was first approved in Europe in 1999 and is now used in more than 40 countries.
Because it works by prompting your skin to make new collagen, which takes weeks and months. The early fullness after a session is fluid and swelling; the real result builds over the course.
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