Buttock & Hip Filler Aftercare & Recovery

Please follow these instructions carefully. Appropriate aftercare helps protect the injection sites, reduce avoidable irritation and ensure that possible complications are identified promptly.

This guide applies to hyaluronic-acid body filler only. It does not apply to Sculptra, Lanluma, fat transfer or surgical BBL procedures. Instructions given by your practitioner for the exact product, volume and area treated take priority over this general guide.

Contact the clinic promptly if you are concerned about any symptom, even if you are unsure whether it is normal.

For a non-urgent concern, or if you are unsure whether something needs attention, you can also call NHS 111 (free, 24/7).

A guide only — everyone heals at their own pace.

Temporary swelling, bruising and soreness are expected — here's how to stay comfortable:

If tape or dressings have been applied:

• Keep them clean and dry
• Leave them in place for the period advised by your practitioner
• Do not repeatedly lift the edges to inspect the skin
• Do not reapply a used dressing
• Wash your hands before changing any dressing
• Use only the replacement dressing recommended by the clinic

Some body-filler protocols advise keeping treatment tape dry and in place for approximately three days, but this depends on the product and technique used. Follow the instructions provided for your specific treatment.

For the first four to seven days, minimise prolonged or forceful pressure over the injected areas unless your practitioner has given different instructions for the product used.

The objective is to reduce unnecessary pressure and friction — not to remain completely immobile.

During the initial recovery period:

• Avoid sleeping directly on the treated buttock or hip area
• Sleep on your front or an untreated side where comfortable and clinically appropriate
• If both hips have been treated, follow the positioning advice given by your practitioner
• Use clean bed linen
• Avoid very tight clothing while sleeping
• Do not place a hot-water bottle or heated blanket directly over the area

Do not remain in an uncomfortable position that causes pain, numbness or breathing difficulty. Change position carefully when needed.

Wear loose, breathable clothing that does not dig into the treatment area. Avoid tight jeans, tight leggings, shapewear, waist trainers, tight underwear seams, restrictive gym clothing, tight compression garments, and belts or straps pressing over the entry points. Loose clothing helps reduce friction and unwanted pressure.

Compression garments

Do not automatically wear a compression garment after HA filler. Only wear one if your practitioner has specifically recommended it, the garment has been checked for appropriate fit, you have been told how long to wear it, and it does not apply excessive pressure over the injected filler.

Follow the instructions given for your dressings. Until the entry points have closed:

Keep the area clean and pat the surrounding skin dry rather than rubbing. If you have been told to keep tape dry, avoid shower water directly over it for the stated period. Manufacturer guidance may advise avoiding showering directly over taped body-filler entry sites and avoiding water or pressure for several days.

Avoid strenuous exercise for approximately four to seven days, or longer if you still have significant swelling, pain or bruising. This includes:

Gentle walking is usually appropriate unless your practitioner advises otherwise. Return to exercise gradually.

Until the initial swelling, redness and tenderness have settled, avoid saunas, steam rooms, hot tubs, sunbeds, intense sun exposure, hot waxing over the area, very hot baths, heated seats, heated blankets directly over the area, ice baths and extreme cold exposure.

Do not apply ice directly to the skin. If your practitioner recommends cooling, use a clean, wrapped cool pack for short periods without applying strong pressure.

Alcohol: avoid for at least 24 hours and while significant bruising or swelling remains, as it may make these symptoms more noticeable.

Smoking & nicotine: avoid or reduce smoking, vaping and nicotine during healing where possible. Do not smoke while lying in a position that places pressure on the treated area.

Medication:

• Do not stop prescribed medication without speaking to the clinician who prescribed it
• Do not stop prescribed blood-thinning medication on the clinic's advice alone
• Avoid additional aspirin or anti-inflammatory medicines solely for treatment discomfort unless they are normally safe for you and approved by your prescriber or pharmacist
• Do not take leftover antibiotics
• Do not apply unprescribed steroid or antibiotic creams
• Do not use someone else's medication

Massage requirements vary according to the product used, injection plane, volume injected, treatment area, practitioner technique and immediate clinical findings. Some HA body-filler manufacturers recommend a specific massage routine, while other situations require avoiding manipulation. Therefore:

Where massage is prescribed, your practitioner should provide the date to begin, the exact area, pressure to use, duration, frequency, the date to stop, and the symptoms that mean you should stop and contact the clinic. Stop massage and seek advice if it causes increasing pain, redness, heat, swelling, bruising or skin-colour change.

Swelling may be noticeable for several days and can initially make the area appear uneven. To support recovery: avoid pressure and friction, wear loose clothing, rest from strenuous exercise, use a clean wrapped cool pack only if recommended, and allow time for both sides to settle. Do not compare the result repeatedly during early healing or book an immediate top-up based on swelling-related asymmetry.

Bruising may develop immediately or the following day, darken before fading, extend beyond the treatment area, and take approximately two weeks to resolve.

Mild temporary firmness and unevenness may occur while swelling settles and the filler integrates.

Lumps may arise immediately or develop later — persistent or delayed lumps require clinical assessment.

Infection can develop several days or occasionally longer after treatment. Contact Layali Clinic promptly if you experience:

Do not squeeze or drain the area, insert a needle, apply leftover antibiotics, cover a draining wound with cosmetics, or delay seeking help because you believe it is ordinary swelling.

Some filler-related problems can develop weeks or months after treatment. Contact the clinic if you later develop a new lump or nodule, recurrent swelling, redness or tenderness, increasing firmness, filler migration, skin discolouration, persistent itching, pain after the area had previously settled, or symptoms following an infection or significant illness.

Tell any healthcare professional assessing the area that you have had HA body filler. Provide the product and batch information from your treatment record where possible.

During the initial healing period, avoid massage treatments over the area, lymphatic drainage over the filler (unless approved), body-contouring machines, radiofrequency, HIFU, cryolipolysis, endolaser, laser treatment, microneedling, injections into the same area, surgical procedures affecting the area, and waxing over healing entry points.

Do not undergo another treatment over the buttocks or hips until Layali Clinic has confirmed that the filler has settled and the skin has healed. Tell future practitioners that HA filler is present before they perform injections, surgery or energy-based treatment in the area.

Results are visible immediately, but the early appearance includes swelling and may not represent the final result. The area should be reviewed only after sufficient settling time. Your follow-up may include:

Do not assume every uneven area requires additional filler — natural asymmetry, swelling, skin laxity and skeletal structure may remain. Do not arrange corrective treatment or filler dissolving elsewhere before Layali Clinic has had an opportunity to assess you, unless urgent medical circumstances require another clinician to intervene.

Contact the clinic if:

• You are worried about any symptom
• Pain is greater than expected
• Swelling is severe or increasing
• Bruising is rapidly spreading
• The area becomes hot or increasingly red
• You develop pus, fever or feel unwell
• An entry point begins leaking
• You develop a painful lump
• Your result changes after initially settling
• You notice migration or significant asymmetry
• You experience persistent numbness
• You are unsure whether your healing is normal

Telephone advice and photographs may help with initial triage, but do not replace a face-to-face assessment where a complication is suspected.