Sculptra works gradually, stimulating your own collagen over months rather than filling at the time of treatment. Preparation is mostly about reducing bruising.
Planning Your Treatment
- Sculptra takes months to reach its full effect and is usually given as a series. If you have an event coming, start well ahead of it. This is not a treatment to book close to a date that matters.
- Tell us about every injectable you have ever had, including treatment elsewhere, which product it was, and roughly when. Undisclosed previous treatment is a genuine safety issue, not a formality.
One Week Before
- If you are prone to cold sores and we will be treating near your mouth, tell us. We can prescribe an antiviral to start before your visit.
- Avoid new skin treatments in the area — peels, laser, waxing, aggressive facials — unless we have planned them together.
Three to Seven Days Before
- If it is medically safe for you to do so, stop anything that thins the blood. This is the single biggest cause of bruising. It includes over-the-counter anti-inflammatory pain relievers and a number of common vitamins, herbal remedies, and dietary supplements. Bring your full list to your visit, or call ahead, and we will go through it with you and tell you exactly what to stop and when.
- Never stop a prescribed blood thinner on your own. If a physician has prescribed a medication to thin your blood or prevent clots, keep taking it and simply tell us. We will treat you carefully and you should expect more bruising. Only the physician who prescribed it can advise you to change it.
- Plain acetaminophen is fine for pain and does not increase bruising.
- You may start Arnica montana, by mouth or as a gel, a few days beforehand if you bruise easily. The evidence is modest, but it is harmless.
Twenty-Four Hours Before
- No alcohol. It dilates blood vessels and may increase bruising.
The Day of Your Treatment
- Eat something and drink water beforehand. Arriving hungry or dehydrated makes people lightheaded.
- Come with clean skin and, if possible, no makeup on the areas being treated. If you are coming from work, that is fine — we will remove it.
- Bring a current list of your medications and supplements.
- Allow extra time for your first visit. Photographs, consent, and a proper conversation take longer than the injections do.
Tell Us Before We Begin If Any of These Apply
- You are pregnant, think you may be pregnant, or are breastfeeding.
- You have an autoimmune or inflammatory condition, or a history of keloid scarring.
- You have an infection, rash, or active cold sore near the area to be treated.
- You have ever reacted to a filler or to lidocaine.
A Note on Bruising
Bruising is not a complication. It is a normal consequence of putting a needle through skin that contains blood vessels, and it happens to careful injectors and careless ones alike. Following the steps above makes it less likely and less severe. It does not make it impossible. If you bruise, it will fade, and we will show you how to cover it.