First FDA approved facial filler fights deep wrinkles

HOUSTON (NBC) – The Food and Drug Administration approved a new facial filler called JUVEDERM VOLUMA XC , which will be widely available to the public in early December.

While there are several cosmetic fillers on the market, this is the first one that the FDA said is effective and safe.

The filler is injected into a patient's face, and is meant to do what the name implies: fill in a patient's face. The product isn't intended for fine lines, but for deeper wrinkles in a patient's cheeks.

Once VOLUMA XC is injected deep into a patient's cheek, the doctor moves around the gel-like substance to smooth the skin. Dr. Leslie Baumann, a dermatologist, said she tries to achieve a subtle effect. Baumann added that the goal is to make patients look more youthful, not fake. 

Doctors only have about 20 minutes to move the product around inside a patient's cheek. The effects of the procedure, however, last about two years.

The manufacturer hasn't said how much the treatment costs, but publishing reports estimated patients would need to pay between $800 and $1,000 per syringe.

One procedure, that Dr. Baumann performed on a 55-year-old patient, lasted a little less than 30 minutes and took about five of those syringes.