Lip Filler Injection: MicroCannula vs. Needle

Author

Dr. Stephen Cosentino

First-time lip filler patients expect to be stuck with a sharp-tipped needle multiple times over the course of their 15-to-30-minute treatment session.

Some are surprised to find the experience a touch more pleasant. Their number is growing as more providers switch to a newer lip filler injection technique: microcannula lip filler.

The microcannula technique is not a radical departure from the traditional needle approach, but research suggests that it could reduce the risk of local side effects as well as more serious complications.

If you’re considering lip fillers soon, keep reading to understand the key differences between needles and cannulas.

What Is Microcannula Lip Filler Injection?

You can think of a microcannula as a blunt-tipped polymer needle that’s not as rigid or sharp as a traditional hypodermic needle.

A microcannula is narrower (finer) and longer than a traditional needle. It’s designed to give under pressure, whereas a traditional needle subject to the same force would break. The tip is also blunter than a traditional needle’s, though to the naked eye it appears sharp (and is certainly sharp enough to pierce the skin).

A microcannula’s design allows it to deliver filler in a precise treatment area that’s not necessarily in a straight line from the entry point in your skin.

Lip Filler Injections With Traditional Needles

A traditional needle has a very sharp tip that’s designed to pierce the skin with little resistance. It’s thicker than a microcannula, though still quite narrow. Its straight, rigid trunk allows it to deliver precise amounts of filler to very specific areas.

If you’ve had a shot with a sharp needle before, you know that the process can be uncomfortable. That discomfort correlates with higher incidence of unwanted (but mild) side effects like bruising or redness around the injection site.

Benefits of Microcannula vs. Needle Injection

Is microcannula lip filler “better” than needle-injected filler? Many patients and providers would say that it is. Here’s why:

Fewer points of entry. Microcannulae can stay under the skin for longer and trace nonlinear paths through the treatment area. This allows providers to inject more filler per entry point, reducing the incidence of noticeable side effects and the risk that any single entry point becomes infected. The downside to this is that microcannula injections are less precise.

Lower risk of vascular occlusion. Also known as “penetrating a blood vessel,” vascular occlusion is one of the most serious potential lip filler side effects. In the worst case, it can cause a blood clot that leads to serious cardiovascular harm.

More flexibility in filler delivery. Microcannulae give providers more flexibility to create nonlinear injection pathways, rather than straight-line deposits. This reduces the risk of unsightly complications like granulomas.

A Note About Lip Filler Safety

Whether you ultimately choose a traditional needle or a blunt-tipped cannula for your next lip filler injection, make the sensible call and work with a board-certified plastic surgeon or other medical professional who has completed an accredited dermal filler training course.

More so than your choice of injection device, your choice of provider will determine your likelihood of experiencing post-treatment side effects as well as more serious adverse events. It’s not worth the financial savings to inject fillers on yourself or ask a friend to do it for you, and it’s definitely not worth the risk to use cut-rate fillers purchased online. You don’t know what’s in that stuff.