Profhilo in London: what it is, what it costs, and what the evidence shows

This guide is written by the team that offers Profhilo at our clinic on Exhibition Road and reviewed by our clinician. It covers what the product is and does, what the regulators and the law say about it, what the studies measured, what a course involves, how we price it, and whether it suits your skin.

What Profhilo is

Profhilo is a pre-filled 2 ml syringe containing 3.2% hyaluronic acid, 64 mg in all: 32 mg of a long-chain form and 32 mg of a short-chain form, joined by a patented heat process the manufacturer calls NAHYCO, with no chemical cross-linking agent such as BDDE. Hyaluronic acid is a sugar molecule your skin makes itself; it holds water, and your skin makes less of it as you age.

The product is injected with a 29-gauge needle at five marked points on each side of the face, 0.2 ml at each, into the deep dermis or just below it, where it spreads rather than staying as a gel. The manufacturer calls the points BAP, for Bio Aesthetic Points. In our experience a session takes about 20 minutes. The standard course is two sessions four weeks apart, and a third is sometimes suggested for mature or sun-damaged skin. The same product is also used on the neck, with ten injections of 0.2 ml along three vertical lines, and a separate version called Profhilo Body is used on the inner arms, the abdomen and the knees.

"Bio-remodelling" is the manufacturer's word for what it is designed to do: hydrate the skin from within and improve its texture and firmness. The studies below measured hydration, texture and lines.

Is Profhilo a filler?

In the sense most people mean, no: it is not designed to add volume or reshape a cheek or a lip, and its own studies measure skin quality rather than shape. It is hyaluronic acid injected under the skin, though, so it carries the same class of risks as any injected hyaluronic acid, and we keep the same enzyme, hyaluronidase, on site to dissolve it if it is ever needed. The law that bans cosmetic fillers for under-18s in England defines a filler by its use, "any substance used for dermal or mucous membrane filling (whether or not designed to be so used)", and on our reading that covers Profhilo, so we treat adults only.

Profhilo is the injectable hyaluronic acid we lead with for skin quality, and we tell you exactly what it is before you decide. If you want a volumising filler or other injectable treatments instead, or as well, our doctor can provide them, and we will say first if we think another treatment serves you better.

What the regulators say

• Medical device, not a medicine. Profhilo is a CE-marked medical device; authors employed by the manufacturer give the marking date as 2015. The Advertising Standards Authority ruled in December 2024 that it is not a prescription-only medicine, which is why clinics may name it in advertising.
• United States. As of October 2026 Profhilo has no US approval or clearance. The manufacturer licensed the US rights to another company in July 2026, which forecasts a US launch in 2030.
• Who may inject it in the UK. No law today restricts Profhilo to doctors; ours is injected by a doctor in our surgeon-led team. The government's response to its licensing consultation, published in August 2025, promises a licensing scheme in which the highest-risk procedures are limited to regulated healthcare professionals working for CQC-registered providers, with no start date yet and skin boosters not yet placed in a tier. Injecting a filler into anyone under 18 for cosmetic purposes is already an offence in England.

What the studies show

In the studies Profhilo measurably improved skin hydration and texture, with the best scores eight to twelve weeks after the first session. Most of the studies were funded by the manufacturer or run with its involvement, and most measured the same skin before and after treatment; one compared Profhilo with saline.

• The main face study (2016). 64 women aged 38 to 60 had two sessions four weeks apart and were followed for 16 weeks. Skin surface roughness fell by about 16% at four weeks and 19% at eight; a cheek volume-loss score improved by about 24% at twelve weeks; wrinkle severity improved by about 15% at twelve weeks; light bruising affected 14% and light swelling 8%, settling within three to ten days.
• A more recent face study (2025). In 30 women in Singapore, water loss through the skin fell by 21%, and hydration rose by 21% in the six women in whom it was measured.
• The neck (2022). 25 women, two sessions a month apart, followed for four months: a laxity score improved by about 21%, hydration rose, 87% to 96% were satisfied, and about half had light bruising for a few days.
• A placebo-controlled trial (2026). 12 women had Profhilo on one side of the mouth and saline on the other, with assessors who did not know which was which. Wrinkles and pores visibly improved on the Profhilo side. Skin thickness, measured by ultrasound, and satisfaction were no better than placebo, which is why we offer Profhilo for hydration, texture and fine lines rather than to thicken the skin.
• Against another skin booster (2022). In 24 women, Profhilo improved hydration, elasticity and water loss at 14 weeks as much as a competing hyaluronic acid skin booster.
• Collagen. The "stimulates collagen and elastin" description comes from laboratory work on cells and from a nine-patient study of arm skin after surgery that found more elastic fibres, not new collagen. The face studies measured hydration, texture and lines.

So what you can expect is better-hydrated, smoother-looking skin after two sessions, at its best eight to twelve weeks after the first and kept with a top-up at about six months, in skin that was dull, dry or finely lined, with a bruise on the way for some. If sagging is your concern, the clinician will tell you at the consultation which of our treatments suits it.

Who Profhilo suits, and who it does not

It suits adults, typically over 30, with skin that looks dull, dry, thin or finely lined on the face or neck, who want it to look more hydrated and smoother without adding volume, with a top-up about every six months to keep it.

It does not suit anyone looking for a lift, for volume, for a change of shape, or for a result that lasts a year without a top-up. For volume our doctor can provide a filler. For sagging and firmness we offer EMface, Sofwave and Morpheus8 at our sister clinics, and our doctor places PDO threads; we will say at the consultation which suits you.

Who should not have it, from the lists UK clinics use and the general rules for injected hyaluronic acid; the clinician goes through them with you at the consultation:

• Pregnancy and breastfeeding.
• An active skin infection in the area, including a cold sore, or inflamed skin such as active acne, eczema or psoriasis.
• A known allergy to hyaluronic acid or, where used, to the anaesthetic.
• A history of severe allergic reactions, an autoimmune condition or a suppressed immune system, where we take advice first.
• A bleeding disorder, or blood thinners, which raise the bruising risk.
• Keloid or hypertrophic scarring.
• Another filler or Profhilo in the same area within the last four weeks.

What a session is like, step by step

1. Consultation. The clinician examines your skin, asks about your history, explains what Profhilo does and what to expect, and agrees the areas and the two dates. You get the plan and the price in writing. Consultations and follow-up reviews are free.
2. Preparation. The skin is cleaned and the five points on each side are marked. Topical anaesthetic is available if you want it; in our experience most people have the injections without.
3. The injections. Ten injections of 0.2 ml, five on each side, with a fine 29-gauge needle. Each one stings briefly and you feel the product spread. In our experience the session takes about 20 minutes.
4. Straight after. Ten small bumps where the product sits, which flatten over 24 to 48 hours. Some redness and sometimes a bruise.
5. Second session. Four weeks later, the same ten points. We review you eight to twelve weeks after the first session, when the studies measured their best results.

How many sessions, when you see the result, how long it lasts

Is one session enough? The protocol is two, the studies used two, and in our experience the second is where the result becomes obvious. One session is half a course.

What Profhilo costs in London

Profhilo is priced per session, and a course is two sessions a month apart, so compare the price of two.

We price Profhilo from a starting price per session and per course, confirmed in writing at your free consultation, and we price match any comparable written quote. Consultations and follow-up reviews are free whatever you decide.

When you compare prices, compare what is included: with us a doctor in our surgeon-led team injects, hyaluronidase is kept on site, and the written plan gives the price of both sessions.

Results you can check

At your consultation the clinician shows you photographs of our own patients where we have them, with their consent, and you compare your own photographs eight to twelve weeks after the first session, taken in the same light.

Profhilo compared with the alternatives

Profhilo vs a volumising filler. Different jobs, the same material injected. A filler builds or reshapes; Profhilo hydrates and smooths. We lead with Profhilo for skin quality; our doctor can provide a filler if volume is what you want.

Profhilo vs other skin boosters. Profhilo is given at five points a side, ten injections a session, where traditional boosters are usually given as many small injections; in a head-to-head trial it matched a competing hyaluronic acid booster on hydration, elasticity and water loss at 14 weeks.

Profhilo vs energy devices. Different jobs: Profhilo hydrates and smooths the skin from within. If your concern is firmness or sagging rather than hydration, we offer EMface, Sofwave and Morpheus8 at our sister clinics, and our doctor places PDO threads; the clinician will say at the consultation which suits you.

Side effects, and how we manage them

Expected: small bumps at the ten points for 24 to 48 hours, some redness, and bruising in 14% in the main study and about half in the neck study, lasting three to ten days. Swelling can last up to two weeks.

Less common: in the manufacturer's post-marketing reports (company figures; the authors note under-reporting), about 1.09 million people were treated between 2018 and 2023 and 371 facial adverse events were reported, about one in 3,000; most were swelling, redness or discomfort, five were nodules, and the authors describe vascular events as low and attributed to injection technique. Clinic consent forms list infection, including cold sore flare and rarely an abscess, nodules or granulomas appearing weeks or months later, a bluish tinge under the skin (the Tyndall effect), asymmetry, and a very small risk of an allergic reaction.

The risk that matters with any injected hyaluronic acid is a blocked blood vessel. It is very rare, and no Profhilo paper reports a case of skin death or blindness, but it exists for every product injected near facial vessels, which is why we keep hyaluronidase on site and tell you to call us about unusual pain, blanching or a dusky patch.

How to choose a Profhilo clinic in London

• Ask who injects and what they are. Ours is a doctor in a surgeon-led team, and this guide is reviewed by Dr Marie Duggan, GMC 7488383.
• Ask whether hyaluronidase is on site and what the emergency protocol is.
• Ask for the plan in writing: two sessions, the dates, the price of both, and the review.
• Ask how long it lasts and where the number comes from. Ours: up to about six months for the face, with a top-up to keep it.
• Ask for the product's batch label and the supplier.

Aftercare

Leave the bumps alone; they flatten on their own. No make-up on the points for 24 hours, no exercise, saunas, steam or flying for 48 hours, no facials, lasers, light treatments or sunbeds for two weeks, and a high-factor sunscreen with limited sun for the first days. Avoid alcohol, aspirin and anti-inflammatory painkillers in the day before and after unless prescribed, because they raise bruising. Tell us about unusual pain, a patch of skin that goes pale or dusky, spreading redness, or a lump that appears weeks later.

Frequently asked questions