Juvederm: Everything You Need to Know Before Your Appointment

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Many people use Juvederm to treat wrinkles and lines, but there are other reasons to choose it: acne scars, lifting the cheeks, filling loose or sagging skin for a general younger look (“a liquid face lift”), changing the nose shape, to get plumper lips, and even medical conditions like lipodystrophy, which cause the loss of fat from the face.

While any injection can be painful, there are ways to mitigate it. The Juvederm XC products contain a local anesthetic. Another option is to have a dental block done.

Juvederm injections usually result in some bruising and swelling, which can last up to two weeks. Bruising will eventually go away, but there are some things you can do to reduce it.

For one to two weeks before your treatment, don’t use:

  • Alcohol

  • NSAID drugs (aspirin, Aleve, Advil, or Motrin)

  • Prescription blood thinner medicines

  • Vitamin E

  • Fish oil

  • The “G” herbs (ginkgo, garlic, and ginseng)

After your treatment, do use:

  • A product containing Arnica montana, such as Ocumend patches

  • Ice

It’s common to have small lumps or bumps the first week after injections. If it does not go away in a week, your provider may use massage or heat to smooth it out.

Although Juvederm injections are a minimally invasive procedure, you should still expect some downtime afterward. Most people don’t want others to see them with lumps and bruising.

Many people who get Juvederm are also interested in having another facial treatment—something like a laser treatment, a chemical peel, or microdermabrasion. We recommend waiting at least a week after Juvederm before getting any other treatment.

If the results of Juvederm are not what you wanted, there is an “undo” option: it can be dissolved with an injection of hyaluronidase.

No one can tell you exactly how long the effects of Juvederm will last, but generally they are in the range of six months to a year.