The Skin Perfector

Could injections put an end to moisturizer? April Long signs up for a new procedure that promises a long-lasting, radiant complexion.

- April Long

I’m sitting in the office of New York dermatologist Dendy Engelman, MD, letting her repeatedly and systematically stick a needle into my face. Her panoply of pricks—I’ve counted at least 60—is quick, but I made the mistake of declining preprocedure numbing cream, and it hurts. This isn’t Botox, nor is it standard filler, but it is supposed to make me look like I’ve been permanently Instagram-filtered.

I first learned about this procedure, called skin-boosting, at a beauty-industry dinner in Switzerland, where I was seated next to a Russian editor whose skin was so plump and dewy it glistened. Her secret, she explained, was that every six months, a dermatologist injected tiny amounts of hyaluronic acid (HA), the supremely moisturizing ingredient found in most face creams, all over her face. “It’s about 100 injections,” she said, casually returning to her meal. “Everyone in Moscow is doing it.”