Comparative analysis of commercial dermal fillers based on crosslinked hyaluronan: Physical characterization and in vitro enzymatic degradation

Abstract The cosmetic market for hyaluronic acid (HA)-based dermal fillers is in continuous and rapid growth and, simultaneously, the development of more effective and safer products is strongly intensifying. In order to highlight the differences among the currently available fillers, in terms of their physical characteristics and on the relation of such properties with product effectiveness, an in vitro evaluation of eight marketed HA-based gels was performed. Filler swelling properties, soluble HA fraction and rheological behaviour were investigated. Furthermore the relative stability to enzymatic hydrolysis was tested. The presence of soluble HA in the formulations varied from 7 ± 1(%) to 33 ± 5(%) with respect to the total HA concentration. Chromatographic analyses showed that the soluble fractions consist of low molecular weight chains ( M w : 260–480 kDa) presenting large distributions ( M w / M n : 1.6–2.5). The investigated fillers were found to be non-equilibrium gels in their commercial formulation also showing different swelling capacities. Rheological measurements indicated a shear thinning behaviour for all the products and elastic modulus values varied over a wide range (100–1800 Pa). Fillers proved differently sensitive to enzymatic degradation. Swelling capacity and enzymatic stability were found consistently dependent on the total HA concentration, insoluble/soluble HA ratio and on the crosslinking extent.