Should I consider doing Selphyl?

Dr. Irwin
August 13, 2010
Dear Dr. Irwin, What do you think of the procedure where they use your own blood and derive part of it to use as a filler via injection? Selphyl is the name of the method. Thanks you, Sharon Newton Albany, Oregon

The marketing machine for this product is beginning to rev up!  I can tell because I’ve been getting a number of questions about it.   It’s buyer beware. 

My opinion is that it’s way too early for Selphyl to be used in a large number of patients.  The actual studies in skin (it was previously approved for orthopedic use) are tiny.  Of the before and after pictures that are being circulated, many of the after photos (read the fine print) were taken 1 hour after injection (the improvement you see is just the initial volume of the injection) and so not permanent or semi-permanent as the photo and their marketing implies.  

I’m still doing my due diligence on this product and I’m not convinced yet that it’s not a huge waste of women’s money and time.   I’m hoping I’m wrong because I love the idea too of something derived from our own blood.  That’s the appeal of fat too but, as we know, fat has turned out to be not a good solution due to the difficulty in doing it well and it’s unpredictability.   I’ll keep everyone posted as I test it.    Dr. I

Dr. Brandith Irwin, MD

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Hi, I’m Dr. Irwin. I believe that consumers deserve a medically trained and unbiased skin care advocate.

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