A five-patient prospective pilot study of a polycaprolactone based dermal filler for hand rejuvenation

Background Hand rejuvenation is becoming more popular as a complementary procedure to facial treatments. Current options include the relatively invasive lipofilling and the less invasive dermal fillers treatments, of which the latter often is too short lasting. An ideal product would therefore be minimally invasive, however, providing longer lasting results. Objectives The objective of this pilot study is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of a polycaprolactone based dermal filler for hand rejuvenation. Methods The dorsum of the hands of five subjects was treated with 1.0mL polycaprolactone based dermal filler per hand. Subjects were seen for follow-up visits after 1, 4, 16, and 24weeks. Results The results showed consistent and high patient satisfaction throughout the duration of the study using a Visual Analog Scale. Satisfaction was rated at 82% at 24weeks and patients were 88% likely to return for repeat treatments on average. On the subject GAIS assessment, all subjects reported an improvement compared to pretreatment throughout the duration of the study. The physicians' GAIS results were very much improved (90%) and much improved (10%) compared to pretreatment throughout the 24weeks follow-up. Conclusions The data of this small pilot suggest that the polycaprolactone based dermal filler is safe, well tolerated and effective for hand rejuvenation, and potentially offers a valuable addition to the current treatment armamentum. Additional studies in a larger patient population should be performed to confirm these findings.