Polymeric injectable fillers for cosmetology: Current status, future trends, and regulatory perspectives

Abstract

Injectable fillers have become a vital part of cosmetology. A wide variety of injectable fillers are developed for either correction of facial wrinkles and folds or facial contouring. As the most popular filler products, polymeric injectable fillers represent a class of the most common implantable medical devices. This review is intended to not only present current filler products, but also share perspectives of future trends, development processes, and regulatory considerations for the next generation of fillers. First, currently approved polymeric injectable fillers are described in detail. Second, future trends of polymeric injectable fillers are discussed. Fillers based on the emerging technologies in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine with stimuli-responsive or tunable properties, as well as device/drug combination products, are promising candidates. Third, fillers for cosmetology are different from traditionally recognized medical devices. As a result, the target population of such fillers is different from that of other implantable devices, leading to different user needs that impact their development processes. Last, product applications, regulatory requirements, device evaluation, characteristics, and difficulties for regulating filler products for minimally invasive cosmetology are reviewed. Both regulatory science and scientific supervision are needed for polymeric injectable fillers which are facing great opportunities as well as challenges. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2020, 137, 48515.