Profhilo vs Polynucleotides: Which Is Better for Your Skin?

Profhilo and polynucleotides are both injectable skin quality treatments, both are given as a short course, and both are aimed at skin that looks tired, crepey or thin rather than at lines or lost volume. The difference is what they are made of and what they do best. Profhilo is a hyaluronic acid product that hydrates and firms. Polynucleotides are a repair treatment that works on the skin's own cells. At our Newcastle clinic we offer polynucleotides, and this page explains why, and who each treatment suits.

What Profhilo is

Profhilo is a high-concentration hyaluronic acid injected at a few set points on each side of the face. It spreads under the skin over the following days and draws in water, which is why the first thing people notice is hydration and a slight firmness. It is usually given as two sessions a month apart, with a top-up after six months or so. It does not add volume the way a filler does, and it is not designed to lift.

What polynucleotides are

Polynucleotides are purified fragments of DNA, most often from salmon, injected in a series of small deposits across the treatment area. Rather than filling or hydrating directly, they signal the skin's fibroblast cells to repair, produce collagen and calm inflammation. The result builds over about six weeks and continues after the course finishes. At RT Aesthetics we use Vitaran for the face and the eye area and Newest, given as a course of two to four sessions of around thirty minutes, at £250 a session after a £25 prescriber consultation.

Where each one wins

For dry, dull skin on someone who mostly wants a hydrated, plumper look for an event, Profhilo does that job well and quickly. For thin, crepey or damaged skin, and above all for the under-eye area, polynucleotides are the stronger choice, because the problem there is skin quality rather than hydration and Profhilo is not designed for the under-eye area. Polynucleotides also suit people who react to hyaluronic acid fillers or who want to avoid any filling effect at all.

Acne scarring and skin that has been damaged by sun or inflammation are treated with polynucleotides rather than Profhilo, because the repair signal is the point of the treatment rather than a side effect of hydration.

Why we chose polynucleotides

The concerns that usually bring people to skin boosters are the eye area, crepey skin and skin that has lost its bounce after weight loss or the menopause. Polynucleotides answer those better than a hydrator does, they can be used under the eyes, and the results keep building for months after the course. We would rather offer one treatment that fixes the problem people actually bring us than two that overlap.

Can you have both?

Yes, and some clinics combine them: polynucleotides first to rebuild the skin, a hydrator later for glow. If you have already had Profhilo elsewhere, polynucleotides can be added once the last session has settled. Tell us at the consultation and we will plan around it.

What either treatment will not do

Neither lifts sagging skin and neither replaces volume. If your concern is jowls or a heavy lower face, HIFU is the treatment to look at. If it is flattened cheeks or a receding chin, it is filler. Skin quality treatments sit alongside those, and often follow them.

Cost comparison

A Profhilo course of two sessions in the North East is typically priced per session and works out at a similar total to a polynucleotide course of two or three. Polynucleotides at RT Aesthetics are £250 a session, and the number of sessions is set at your consultation based on your skin rather than sold as a fixed package. The polynucleotides and skin boosters page has the full detail.

RT Aesthetics is a medically led clinic in Whickham, Newcastle, and every injectable treatment is prescriber-led. Book a £25 consultation and we will tell you which of the two your skin needs, even if the answer is the one we do not offer.