Profhilo Explained: What It Is, How It Works, and What Happens During Treatment

By Dr Mia Steyn, MBChB, MRCP (Derm), Consultant Dermatologist at Dr Sam Bunting + Associates

Dr Mia Steyn is a Consultant Dermatologist at Dr Sam Bunting + Associates. She trained at the University of Stellenbosch and completed her post-graduate specialist dermatology training at the prestigious St John’s Institute of Dermatology in London, where she subsequently held a consultant role managing complex medical dermatology cases. She is on the GMC specialist register. Her clinical focus encompasses the full spectrum of dermatological conditions, from acne and rosacea to pigmentation, eczema, and hair loss, and she brings particular expertise to patients whose skin conditions have proved difficult to diagnose or manage elsewhere.

You've almost certainly heard the word Profhilo. It comes up constantly, in clinic menus, on Instagram, in conversations with friends who've had “a bit of hydration injected.” What's much less clear, and what I get asked about most in consultations, is what it actually is. Is it filler? Does it change how your face looks? What actually happens during the appointment, and how long before you see anything? If you've been curious but haven't had a straight answer, this is that answer.

I use Profhilo regularly in clinic, and it remains one of the treatments I recommend most often for exactly the reason it's become so talked about. It improves how skin behaves without changing how you look. Understanding the mechanism matters here, because knowing what it's actually doing beneath the surface is what lets you judge whether it's the right treatment for what's bothering you.

What Is Profhilo?

Profhilo is an injectable treatment built from hyaluronic acid, the same hydrating molecule found in a huge number of skincare products, but delivered at a concentration and in a form that skincare simply cannot achieve on the skin's surface. Each syringe contains one of the highest concentrations of stabilised hyaluronic acid available in an injectable, and unlike the version used in dermal filler, it is not cross-linked. That means it doesn't sit in place holding a shape. It spreads through the tissue and is gradually absorbed, triggering a biological response along the way. This is why Profhilo is described as a bio-remodelling treatment. It isn't there to add volume. It's there to improve the quality, hydration, and elasticity of the skin itself.

Is Profhilo the Same as Dermal Filler?

No, and this is the question I'm asked most often in consultations. Both use hyaluronic acid, but that's where the similarity ends. Dermal filler is cross-linked, so it holds its shape and stays where it's placed, which is exactly what you want when you're restoring lost volume in the cheeks or smoothing a specific contour. Profhilo is uncross-linked and spreads evenly through the tissue instead, which makes it unsuitable for sculpting but excellent for improving skin quality across a broad area. In practice, the two are often used together: filler to restore structure where it's genuinely needed, Profhilo to improve the condition of the skin sitting over it.

How Does Profhilo Work in the Skin?

Once injected, Profhilo's hyaluronic acid is held by hydrogen bonds rather than chemical cross-links, which lets it spread across a wide area of tissue instead of staying concentrated at the injection point. As it does, it delivers a slow, sustained release of hyaluronic acid directly into the dermis, drawing in and holding water at a depth topical products cannot reach.

That hydration is only part of the effect. Profhilo's presence in the tissue stimulates fibroblasts, the cells responsible for producing collagen and elastin, and studies have shown it prompts the skin to generate four different types of collagen alongside elastin. This dual action, immediate hydration plus a genuine remodelling effect over the following weeks, is what separates Profhilo from a simple hyaluronic acid injection and is why results tend to build gradually rather than appear all at once.

What Can Profhilo Treat on the Face and Neck?

In clinic, I use Profhilo most often for skin laxity and dehydration that has moved beyond what topicals can meaningfully shift. On the face, that typically means dullness, fine lines, and a loss of the bounce and firmness patients associate with healthier skin. Around the jawline and cheeks, it's particularly useful for the early loss of definition that isn't yet significant enough to warrant filler.

The neck and décolleté are areas I treat with Profhilo just as frequently, and often more successfully than the face, because horizontal neck lines and crepey, thinning skin here respond very well to the treatment's spreading mechanism. The neck is one of the first places to show hormonal and age-related change, and it's an area where filler tends to look unnatural, which makes Profhilo's mechanism particularly well suited to it.

It is not the right tool for established volume loss, deep static lines, or significant loss of facial contour. Those sit in filler or other procedure territory, and using Profhilo there would be treating the wrong problem. If you're weighing up Profhilo against other options more broadly, my guide to skincare versus procedures is a useful place to start.

What Happens During a Profhilo Treatment?

Every treatment starts with an assessment of your skin, not just where you think you need it, but where the underlying laxity and dehydration actually sit, and whether the face, neck, or both are the priority. The skin is cleansed thoroughly before we begin.

For the face, we use what's called the BAP technique, bio aesthetic points, a set of around five fixed injection sites per side chosen specifically to allow the product to spread evenly rather than clustering in one place. For the neck, we use a broader ten-point pattern, reflecting the larger surface area and the way skin behaves differently there. In both cases, a very fine needle is used, and most patients describe the sensation as a light pinch rather than anything more significant. Numbing cream is available for anyone who's particularly needle-sensitive, though most people don't feel they need it. The appointment itself, including consultation, typically takes between fifteen and thirty minutes.

Small raised bumps appear at each injection point immediately afterwards. This is expected, and it's simply the product sitting in the tissue before it begins to spread and absorb. Mild swelling, occasional bruising, or these small bumps generally settle within twenty-four to forty-eight hours. We advise avoiding strenuous exercise, alcohol, and heat exposure, including saunas, for twenty-four hours afterwards, but there's no significant downtime beyond that, and makeup can usually be applied later the same day.

How Many Sessions Will You Need, and How Long Do Results Last?

The standard protocol is two treatments spaced four weeks apart, which allows the remodelling effect from the first session to build before the second reinforces it. Some patients, particularly on the neck or in skin with more significant laxity, benefit from an optional third session a further four weeks on.

Hydration improves quickly, often within the first week, while the firmer, more elastic quality that comes from increased collagen and elastin production builds gradually over the following weeks. Once a full course is complete, most patients maintain their results with a single top-up session every four to six months, rather than repeating the entire course each time.

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