Poly-L-Lactic Acid
Also known as: Sculptra, PLLA
Status
FDA-approved. Approved as a medical device, Sculptra (premarket approval P030050), not as a drug, for facial lipoatrophy in people with HIV and for aesthetic correction of nasolabial folds and cheek wrinkles.
What it is
An injectable that works by provoking the skin to make its own collagen over months.
What published research measured
A biodegradable synthetic polymer that acts as a stimulator rather than a filler: it provokes a controlled foreign-body response that lays down collagen over several months, then degrades. Because the result builds gradually, over-correction at the time of treatment is the classic error — the effect seen on the day is not the effect being bought. Nodule formation is the most reported complication and is associated with inadequate reconstitution volume, insufficient hydration time, and injection too superficially.
Source
Yang F et al. 2005 — Electrospinning of nano/micro scale poly(L-lactic acid) aligned fibers and their potential in neural tissue engineering
Sources
No linked primary source is on file for this entry yet.
Educational use only, never medical advice. No doses.