Published 20 October 2026 · Reviewed by Dr Sin Yong
What to expect at a dermal filler visit with Dr Sin Yong is a sequence rather than a single appointment: an assessment of the whole face, a written plan naming the material and the areas, marking on the day, small amounts placed and checked side against side, a check before you leave, a first week of settling, and a review once the swelling has gone.
Short answerThe first visit is an assessment, not a treatment. Treatment usually happens on a separate day, follows a written plan, and is reviewed once the product has settled. This page is part of the dermal fillers guide; the wider background is in the dermal fillers Singapore guide.
Before any dermal filler is placed there is a consultation, and it is a separate visit from treatment. Dr Sin Yong takes a history that covers what concerns you, how it has changed, your general health and medicines, and every earlier injectable you have had: the product, the areas and the dates, as far as you know them. Whether that was hyaluronic acid, which can be dissolved, or a biostimulator, which cannot, changes what can safely be added. Where there is doubt, ultrasound is used to see what sits in the tissue before anything is decided.
Illustrative image — not a patient.
The face is examined as a whole, at rest and in movement, because a filler adds volume and does nothing for laxity or skin quality. If the main change is descent rather than loss, you are told so, and the plan may point to lifting first, as the volume restoration page explains.
You leave with a written plan naming the areas, the material, the tissue plane and what decides the fee, together with the option of no treatment. You are not expected to decide on the day; the consultation process page sets out why.
What does the dermal filler treatment itself involve?
On treatment day the plan is confirmed first, and nothing is added to it on the chair. The skin is cleaned, the areas are marked, and a topical anaesthetic is applied; most hyaluronic acid fillers also contain lidocaine, which numbs the area further as the product goes in.
The product is then placed area by area in the plane the plan named: on the bone for structure in the cheek, chin, jawline and nose, in the fat or dermis for softer work. On the nose, Dr Sin Yong places filler with a fine needle on the bone. Each area receives a small amount, and the two sides are compared before any more is added; that is slower than emptying a syringe, and it is the point of the method.
Most people describe pressure, a brief sting at the entry points and a sense of fullness rather than pain; the lips and tear troughs are more sensitive than the cheeks or chin. Throughout, the skin colour over and around the area is watched, because a change in colour is the earliest sign that filler is pressing on or inside a vessel. The signs are set out on vascular occlusion warning signs.
“The day you are injected is the day you look least like the result. I judge a filler at review, once the swelling has gone, and never on the chair.”
Dr Sin YongOn when a filler can be judged
What happens straight after dermal fillers?
Before you leave, the treated areas are reviewed with you, the skin colour is checked, and a cool compress can be held lightly for comfort. Swelling begins soon afterwards and is expected; so are small bruises at the entry points and a feeling that the product is firm or palpable. None of these is the result, and none is a reason to press or massage the area.
Before you go, written aftercare is given that names the product, the areas and the plane, and lists what to avoid on the first day: pressing, massage, make-up over the entry points, heat, alcohol and hard exercise. It also lists the signs that need a same-day call, which are skin that turns white, dusky or mottled, pain that is getting worse rather than settling, and any change in vision, which is an emergency. The full checklist is on dermal filler aftercare, and the signs that need an emergency department are on complication care.
What does the first week after dermal fillers look like?
The first week is about settling, and the treated area is left alone while it does. Swelling and tenderness are expected and settle at different rates on each side, so temporary asymmetry is common and is not judged, and not corrected, until the swelling has gone. Lips and tear troughs swell more than bony areas.
Nothing presses, heats or vibrates the area in this period: no facials, massage, gua sha, saunas, energy treatments over the same zones, and no dental work unless the clinic has agreed. Sleeping face-up with the head raised for the first nights keeps swelling even. Hard exercise waits until the swelling has settled.
What is normal, and what is not
Normal: swelling, tenderness, small bruises, firmness that softens as swelling settles, temporary asymmetry.
Needs a call: a lump that is growing, hard or painful; increasing redness, warmth or pus at an entry point; a bluish tint through thin skin.
Same day or emergency: blanching, dusky or mottled skin, worsening pain, any change in vision, or swelling of the lips, tongue or throat with difficulty breathing.
What happens at the dermal filler review?
The review is timed for after swelling has settled, which is when the shape can be judged honestly. Dr Sin Yong examines the treated areas at rest and in movement, checks the entry points, and compares the face with the photographs in your record. Any small adjustment is decided then, from what has settled; if nothing is needed, nothing is added.
The review is also where the record is completed: the product, the areas, the plane and the date, so that any doctor who treats you later knows what is in the face. Keep a copy. If you were treated elsewhere and something looks heavy, has moved or feels lumpy, the same examination is available through filler correction, usually with ultrasound first. What decides the fee for all of this, without figures, is on dermal filler cost factors.
Your next step
1. MessageWhatsApp +65 8023 7170 with what is bothering you. A reply comes from the clinic, not a bot.
2. AssessmentDr Sin Yong examines you himself on Orchard Road, with ultrasound where earlier filler is involved.
3. A plan in writingWhat he would do, what he would not, the fee factors, and the option of no treatment.
Every treatment is performed by Dr Sin Yong personally. Singapore Medical Council registered · invited to share his clinical expertise internationally for CLASSYS, DEKA, Fotona, Hironic and Ilooda.
Book an assessment with Dr Sin Yong on Orchard Road; bring the names and dates of any earlier injectables. How consultations work.
Not unless that was agreed in advance and the plan is simple. The first visit is an assessment of the whole face, with ultrasound where earlier filler is involved, and it ends with a written plan you can take home. Treatment is a separate day, so that there is time to consider the plan, the material, the plane and the option of no treatment before anything is placed.
Most people describe pressure, a brief sting at the entry points and a feeling of fullness rather than pain. A topical anaesthetic is applied first, and most hyaluronic acid fillers contain lidocaine, which numbs the area further as the product goes in. The lips and tear troughs are more sensitive than the cheeks, chin or jawline, and that is planned for.
Because swelling begins soon after treatment and settles at different rates on each side. Swelling, tenderness, small bruises and a firm feel are expected, and temporary asymmetry while they settle is common. None of it is the result, and none of it is a reason to add product. The shape is judged at review, once the swelling has gone.
Anything that presses, heats or vibrates the area: massage, facials, gua sha, saunas, hard exercise, energy treatments over the same zones, and dental work unless the clinic has agreed. Sleep face-up with the head raised for the first nights, keep the entry points clean, and do not have the area adjusted by anyone else. The full list is on the dermal filler aftercare page.
The same day if the skin turns white, dusky or mottled, if pain is getting worse rather than settling, or if a lump is growing, hard or painful. Any change in vision, new facial weakness, or swelling of the lips, tongue or throat with difficulty breathing is an emergency: go to the nearest emergency department rather than travelling to the clinic first.
References
Global Aesthetics Consensus: Avoidance and Management of Complications from Hyaluronic Acid Fillers — Evidence- and Opinion-Based Review and Consensus Recommendations. Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery 137(6), 2016. source
Avoiding and Treating Blindness From Fillers: A Review of the World Literature. Dermatologic Surgery 41(10), 2015. source
Update on Avoiding and Treating Blindness From Fillers: A Recent Review of the World Literature. Aesthetic Surgery Journal 39(6), 2019. source
About this page: written and medically reviewed by Dr Sin Yong, MBBS (NUS), MRCS (Edinburgh) · Last reviewed 20 October 2026 · Illustrative images only, not patients · Editorial policy
