Silicone Injection for Facial Scars and Defects



One problem that is encountered is depressions in the neck or face.  These depressed scars can vary from a small acne scar or be severe in the case of previous tissue loss from previous wounds or surgery.  Numerous treatments exist for depressed scars including treating with fillers, fat, implants and surgery.  Although fillers are useful, most of them are temporary and wear in less than a year.  Fat is an option, but usually requires multiple treatments and is sometimes not “thick” enough to lift the heavy scar tissue.

Silicone injection is a permanent treatment, that has been safely used for 50 years to treat depressed scars or fill voids.  Silicone injection has a bad reputation in some circles and is due to the abuse of the product by inexperienced injectors.  Unscrupulous doctors use hardware store silicone instead of an FDA approved medical grade product.  In addition, instead of microdroplet or “rice grain” injection technique, large volumes or “puddles” of silicone are injected.  Getting Home Depot silicone from an unlicensed person in a hotel room seems crazy, but many people have been harmed in this manner.

Medical grade silicone injected by an expert injector with proper technique is a natural feeling and looking solution to various scar problems and has been safely performed for half a century.  Silicone is considered a permanent treatment as the injected droplets become surrounded by the body’s own collagen and the result actually grows slightly over about a month.  Due to this, multiple small treatments are performed until the final result is reached.  Since silicone is not reversible, injection s should always be conservative by experienced surgeons.

For more information about cosmetic facial surgery visit


Joe Niamtu, III DMD

Cosmetic Facial Surgery

Richmond, Virginia