Aftercare · Hyaluronidase Dissolution

After Your Hyaluronidase Dissolution Treatment

What to expect in the normal course, why swelling behaves differently than after a filler treatment — and which warning signs require an immediate response.

Emergency: If you experience shortness of breath, a circulatory reaction, a severe skin rash, or swelling of the face/throat, call 112 immediately. Practice: 09132 9024770.

Dissolving a hyaluronic acid treatment with the enzyme hyaluronidase is an established method — but its course differs from that of a regular filler treatment. The following notes will guide you through the first few days.

What to expect in the normal course

Directly after treatment

  • Swelling in the treated area — often more pronounced than after the original filler treatment, because water is released from the dissolved material
  • Redness, mild warmth
  • Occasionally small bruises at injection sites
  • A feeling of pressure, mild sensitivity

In the first 24–72 hours

  • Swelling usually peaks after 12–24 hours and then gradually subsides
  • The treated region may initially appear “flatter” or “sunken” — this is normal and reflects the dissolution of the material

Day 3–7

  • Swelling has largely subsided; the actual dissolution result becomes visible
  • A final assessment is made after 7–14 days — until then, the tissue needs time to settle

Please avoid for 24 hours

  • Massaging or vigorously rubbing the treated area
  • Sauna, steam bath, hot baths
  • Intense exercise, strenuous physical activity
  • Direct sun exposure; outdoors, use consistent sun protection
  • Alcohol (dilates blood vessels)
  • Tight-fitting clothing or glasses that press on the treated area

What you can actively do

  • Gentle cooling with a cool pack wrapped in a cloth — not directly on the skin, in short intervals
  • Sleeping with your head slightly elevated the first night reduces swelling
  • Drink plenty of fluids
  • Mild, soothing skincare
Important on expectations: If only a partial area is dissolved (for example, over-corrected lips or an irregularity), the surrounding hyaluronic acid remains untouched. It is therefore possible that, once the swelling has subsided, an asymmetry becomes visible that was previously masked by the swelling. In such cases, the next steps are discussed together 7–14 days after the dissolution.

When to contact us immediately

Hyaluronidase is an enzyme of animal origin and, in rare cases, can trigger allergic reactions — ranging from mild skin reactions to severe immediate reactions. An immediate response is required for the following symptoms:

  • Shortness of breath, tightness in the throat or chest
  • Dizziness, circulatory weakness, nausea, drop in blood pressure
  • Sudden, widespread skin rash with itching, hives
  • Swelling of the face, lips, tongue or throat beyond the treated area
  • Severe, increasing pain that is not consistent with normal pressure sensations
  • Signs of a skin infection: increasing redness, warmth, pus — in the following days
Background: Before every hyaluronidase treatment, you receive medical counselling on these risks and, as a rule, a preliminary test is carried out. The practice is equipped to recognize and treat allergic reactions — as an anesthesiology-led private practice, emergency management is part of everyday clinical routine.

How to reach us

Practice: 09132 9024770. Outside office hours: on-call medical service 116 117; for shortness of breath, a circulatory reaction, or a severe allergic reaction, call 112 immediately.

These notes are based on the prescribing information for hyaluronidase-containing preparations, guidelines on the emergency management of anaphylactic reactions, and standard aesthetic-medical practice. They do not replace individual medical consultation. When in doubt, it is better to call once too often than once too few.