Complications Following Facial Injection of Growth Factor Solution

Topical injection of growth factor (GF) for facial rejuvenation is unauthorized, but it is commonly performed in China, leading to emerging and challenging complications. The purpose of this study is to investigate the clinical, imaging, and histopathologic characteristics of complications caused by facial GF injection, as well as their treatments and outcomes.

We performed a retrospective single-centered case series study on consecutive patients who were treated for complications following facial injection of GF. The primary outcome was the recurrence over follow-up period. The secondary outcomes were the subjective evaluations of the facial aesthetic, symptomatic, and psychological improvements using the Global Aesthetic Improvement Scale (GAIS) and a patient-reported outcome measurement (PROM). Kaplan-Meier analysis and log-rank test were performed to investigate the recurrence.

A total of 32 females with an average age of 42.6 ± 9.4 years were included. Most patients received GF injections in non-medical institutes such as beauty spas and presented with uncontrollable soft tissue hyperplasia, diffuse subcutaneous swelling, and skin redness. Ultrasonography showed heterogeneous hypoechoic or echogenic areas in a thickened and disorganized subcutaneous tissue hierarchy. MRI showed flaky isointensive or hypointensive signals on T1WI and hyperintensive signals on T2WI. 37.5% patient underwent triamcinolone acetonide injection, whereas 62.5% patients underwent surgical interventions. Lipoma-like hyperplastic tissue was found during surgery. HE staining confirmed intramuscular lipoma and fibrolipomatous tissue hyperplasia. Recurrence was found in 37.5% patients over a median follow-up of 6 months. KM curves and log-rank test demonstrated no significant difference in the recurrence between patients who underwent nonsurgical or surgical interventions (p = 0.77). GAIS and PROM scores indicated substantial aesthetic, symptomatic, and psychological improvements in 70%, 91.7%, and 75% patients, respectively.

Both surgical and nonsurgical interventions are feasible and effective treatment options for GF-induced complications. Although recurrence rate was relatively high, aesthetic, symptomatic, and psychological improvements were achieved in most patients. We developed a workflow that might help diagnose and treat complications following unknown dermal filler injections.

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