Fillers and corona

Fillers and Corona

There may be an allergic reaction of redness and swelling where hyaluronic acid injectables have been placed in combination with the Moderna corona vaccine or the Pfizer Corona vaccine. Every day, we receive questions about the side effects of a filler treatment with a Corona vaccine. More and more is being known about the various corona vaccines and how/if they can react with hyaluronic acid fillers.

Fillers in combination with the Corona vaccine

Cosmetic doctors, dermatologists and plastic surgeons have long been familiar with the fact that vaccinations can trigger allergic reactions in people who have been treated with fillers. This should include thickening and redness at the location of the injected filler. This reaction is because the immune system has become more active due to vaccination, causing the immune system to react against foreign material, the filler. This also appears to be the case with Moderna and Pfizer's Corona vaccines. These may cause a reaction of redness and swelling at the areas where fillers have been administered.

Advice

Are you getting a vaccination? If you receive a corona vaccination with the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine, we recommend not to undergo filler treatment in the 2 weeks before vaccination and 2 weeks after vaccination. Although the risk is very small, you reduce the chance of getting side effects. Do you have side effects? Do you have side effects from your fillers after getting a corona vaccine? Then contact your treating doctor. Depending on your symptoms, he recommends taking antihistamines (cetrizine, clemastine, Zyrtec, Arius) for moderate symptoms. If the symptoms are worse, your doctor may prescribe prednisone to reduce the immune response to the filler. Although it is of course super annoying if you get side effects from fillers on the vaccine

What are the causes of side effects between fillers and the corona vaccine?

The immune system has become more active as a result of the vaccination. Elsewhere in the body, the activated immune system can then trigger an allergic reaction around fillers. In addition, “by-substances” are used in some fillers, such as polyethylene glycol (PEG) and mannitol, which are also used in these vaccines. The Pfizer vaccine contains PEG, and the Moderna vaccine contains mannitol. Because there is an immune reaction to the vaccine (which contains PEG/mannitol), an immune reaction can also be triggered against these substances in the filler.

What side effects do we see after the corona vaccine?

Redness and swelling. Although hyaluronic is a substance produced by the body and your body hardly responds to it, as described above, it can still be attacked by your immune system. These side effects may also occur after another vaccination or infection elsewhere in the body.

EMA: side effects of the Pfizer vaccine

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) describes “a reasonable possibility of a causal relationship” between the Pfizer vaccine side effects such as facial swelling and redness in areas where fillers have recently been treated. According to the EMA, the benefits of the Pfizer vaccine still outweigh the possible side effects.

FDA: Moderna vaccine side effects

Of the more than 15,000 vaccinated, three patients received this side effect observed. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reports side effects such as redness and swelling at the areas where a filler treatment was administered. All three clients recovered without problems.

Resources

1. “COVID-19/SARS-CoV-2 virus spike protein-related delayed inflammatory reaction to hyaluronic acid dermal fillers: a challenging clinical conundrum in diagnosis and treatment” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7871141/
2. “Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee Meeting; FDA Briefing Document for Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine.” U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Dec. 17, 2020 https://www.fda.gov/media/144434/download
3. Medical Contact https://www.medischcontact.nl/opinie/reacties/ingezonden-reactie/bijwerkingen-door-moderna-vaccin-bij-mensen-met-fillers.htm