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Mesotherapy

Written by: Alice Hart-Davis

Last Updated: 12 January 2024

What is mesotherapy?

Mesotherapy is a treatment that involves injecting a cocktail of ingredients into the middle layer of the skin, the ‘mesoderm’. Mesotherapy has been popular in France for 50 years; the British have been slower to adopt it but tweakment clinics are increasingly adding it to their list of offerings.

What exactly is injected and how it is injected depends both on the aim of the treatment and on the practitioner performing the treatment. The cocktail that is injected usually contains a mixture of hydrating hyaluronic acid and vitamins, though this will vary from clinic to clinic. Some practitioners like to mix a little toxins into the treatment, too, which might sound mad until you learn that these superficial injections of diluted toxin can help to reduce skin oiliness in the areas where they are injected. Scroll down for all the FAQs on mesotherapy.

EXPECT TO PAY

£ 150

TWEAKMENT TIME

45 minutes

LONGEVITY

2 weeks

ANAESTHESIA

None

DOWNTIME

24 hours

Find a Practitioner

Postcode

What does mesotherapy do?

Mesotherapy is used as an entry-level tweakment to smooth and rejuvenate the skin. The treatment adds hydration, smooths the surface of the skin, and helps the skin to regenerate itself from within.

Does mesotherapy work?

Yes – but. Mesotherapy appears to be effective, but not much scientific research has been conducted on how well it works. Anecdotally, the evidence seems pretty good.

Rejuvenating mesotherapy gives a visible result that lasts for a couple of weeks – longer if you complete a course of treatment.

mesotherapy

What is it like to have mesotherapy?

Your experience will vary depending on which type of mesotherapy treatment you have. But as an example, here is my experience of a rejuvenating mesotherapy treatment on the face.

I’m braced for a painful impact as the aesthetic nurse doing my treatment hefts the meso gun, which starts knocking a 3mm needle repeatedly into my skin, but to my great surprise (and relief) I can feel only minute pinpricks as it does its work. Phew. She works steadily around my face injecting the serum cocktail, then turns up the speed of the needles to create more miniature wounds in the skin. But even that doesn’t hurt. For the final 20 minutes, I lie peacefully under a canopy of soothing red LED lights to calm down the redness and inflammation in my traumatised skin.

I was warned that I would look as if I had been stung all over, but I only look a bit freckly and sunburned after the treatment, and even that redness has subsided by the end of the day. What I do notice, particularly the next day, is how amazingly plumped up my skin is – which isn’t really surprising as there is a whole 5ml teaspoonful of the magic meso cocktail now trapped between the upper and lower layers of my skin. On the third day, it looks particularly good.

I can see why this glowy smoothness is addictive, and why it is so popular before big events. The glow and the plumpness dwindles over the next week; if you do more sessions, the results are meant to last for longer.

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Mesotherapy 100

Is mesotherapy safe?

As mentioned in the previous section, mesotherapy hasn’t been formally researched much, and there’s no conclusive proof that mesotherapy is safe. However, mesotherapy has been used for a long time in France, and negative effects seem limited to the short-term swelling, tenderness, and occasional bruising that you would expect from having a faceful of injections.

How much does mesotherapy cost?

Mesotherapy costs £150 upward. The standard recommendation for rejuvenating treatments is for three sessions at two-week intervals.

How long does mesotherapy take?

A mesotherapy session usually takes 30 to 60 minutes. If you need to have anaesthetic cream before treatment, that’ll add 30 minutes.

How long does mesotherapy last?

The results of rejuvenating mesotherapy typically last from a couple of weeks, or longer if you do a course. The better you look after your skin and your health, the longer you can prolong the effects.

Can mesotherapy be used on the body? 

Mesotherapy is most commonly talked about as a skin-boosting treatment for the face, but it can be used anywhere on the body to plump and add a hydrated glow. (The cost can just tot up due to the larger areas being treated). For that reason, mesotherapy can be a good option to help breathe some new life into dry, dull-looking hands, or to tackle annoying patches of dryness. There’s some suggestions it could help with skin quality issues on your body too, such as cellulite and stretch marks, but you are likely to need quite a few sessions and the results are temporary.

portrait of a beautiful mature lady with a towel on her head looking at her skin in the mirror

FAQ ABOUT Mesotherapy


Does mesotherapy hurt?

Mesotherapy typically involves some discomfort because you’re having multiple injections. But if you’re having the rejuvenating type of mesotherapy, the discomfort is usually minor enough that you don’t need pain management. The practitioner may also use ice (or an ice pack) to briefly numb the area about to be injected.

The practitioner will discuss the likely degree of discomfort with you before your mesotherapy treatment. If you’re likely to suffer significant discomfort, the practitioner will offer you anaesthetic gel.

Where can I get mesotherapy?

You can use the Find a Practitioner tool on this website to find a practitioner who offers mesotherapy.

Are there any side effects to mesotherapy?

Mesotherapy commonly has several side effects:

  • Swelling. The treated area may swell in response to the mesotherapy treatment. The swelling will go down after a day or two.
  • Tenderness. The treated area is normally also tender to the touch. Tenderness could last for a week if you are unlucky – when I tried mesotherapy, my skin felt absolutely fine the next day.
  • Bruising. You may also have bruising in the treated area because of the needle puncturing blood vessels in the skin. Bruising should also clear up in one to two weeks.
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