Compare · Procedures

PDO Threads vs Radiesse

PDO Threads: Dissolvable stitches placed under the skin to lift it a little and prompt some collagen. The lift is real but small, it lasts months rather than years, and it is not a substitute for a facelift.

Radiesse: An injectable made of calcium-based microspheres in a gel. It adds volume the day it is placed and then prompts the skin to build collagen. It cannot be dissolved.

Reviewed by Dr. Schwarz, Board-Certified Dermatologist
Last updated: 10/22/2026
Editorial illustration for PDO Threads, based on the entry’s treatment or equipment reference.Editorial illustration for Radiesse, based on the entry’s treatment or equipment reference.
Choose ifKey differencesWhat is it?What it treatsTreatment areasSkin tonesHow it worksBefore your treatmentDay of treatmentAfter your treatmentRisksCostQuestionsRelated

Choose PDO Threads if…

Choose for a small, temporary lift of mild sagging without surgery — not a substitute for a facelift.

  • Early, mild sagging
  • You want a small lift without surgery
  • You're fine with results lasting months

Choose Radiesse if…

Choose for structural volume in the cheeks, jaw or hands when you want collagen stimulation too — it can't be dissolved.

  • Cheek, jawline or hand volume loss
  • You want results lasting over a year
  • Not for lips or under the eyes
Fine together

Can you have both?

Threads lift and Radiesse adds volume and collagen. They are sometimes combined, usually in separate sessions.

Key differences

● PDO Threads
● Radiesse
DowntimeNone → 2+ weeks
3–7 days
3–7 days
PainMinimal → Needs anesthesia or sedation
Moderate
Mild
Results showImmediately → 3+ months
Immediately
Immediately
How long it lastsWeeks → Years or permanent
6–12 months
1–2 years
Visits neededOne → Every few months
Yearly top-ups
Yearly top-ups
Cost per visit$ → $$$$$
$$$$
$$$
ReversibleYes, can be undone → No, permanent
Partly
No, fades slowly

What is it?

PDO Threads

Radiesse

What is it?

They are dissolvable threads.

Polydioxanone threads are placed beneath the skin.

They give temporary support.

They provide mechanical lift and a tissue response.

They are not a facelift.

Results are not equivalent to surgery.

Evidence is limited.

Infection risk and prior procedures should be discussed.

It is a calcium-based filler.

Radiesse contains calcium hydroxylapatite microspheres in a gel.

It provides structure.

It supports tissue and triggers a later tissue response.

Diluted uses differ.

Hyperdilute use is not the same as volumizing.

Ask about the plan.

The intended use determines the evidence and rescue options.

What it treats

Evidence level
PDO Threads
Radiesse
Strong evidenceMost established uses
—
Volume Loss on light skin.

Volume Loss

Restores fullness.

Moderate evidenceSome supportive research
—
Sagging Skin on light skin.

Sagging Skin

Diluted versions improve firmness.

A relaxed forehead with pronounced deep horizontal furrows.

Deep Wrinkles

Fills deep folds.

Limited evidenceEarly or small studies
Sagging Skin on light skin.

Sagging Skin

Mild, temporary lift.

—
Little evidence
A relaxed forehead with pronounced deep horizontal furrows.

Deep Wrinkles

Little change on deep folds.

A relaxed forehead with faint shallow horizontal fine lines.

Wrinkles and Fine Lines

Too heavy for fine lines.

Not effective
Volume Loss on light skin.

Volume Loss

Doesn't add volume.

Thin Lips on light skin.

Thin Lips

Not used in the lips.

Treatment areas

Treatment areas

Selected areas of the face; placement follows the assessed lifting plan.

Facial volume loss and backs of the hands; product use and dilution depend on the plan.

Skin tones

Skin tone
● PDO Threads
● Radiesse
Lighter skin
Low risk
Bruising and dimpling settle.
Low risk
Bruising fades in a week.
Medium skin
Low risk
Not a pigment-based treatment.
Low risk
Not a pigment-based treatment.
Deeper skin
Low risk
Bruising may leave brief dark marks.
Low risk
Bruising may leave brief dark marks.

How it works

PDO Threads

Radiesse

How it works
PDO Threads mechanism diagram. Threads are placed beneath skin: A clinician selects the thread type and tissue plane. Support depends on the thread: Barbed threads can provide a mechanical lifting effect. Tissue responds as threads resorb: Effects are temporary and vary with anatomy and technique.
Radiesse mechanism diagram. The material is placed: A clinician injects calcium hydroxylapatite in a gel carrier. The gel provides initial support: Early correction depends on formulation and placement. Collagen response develops: Tissue remodeling contributes as the gel carrier is absorbed.
Diagram explanation

Threads are placed beneath skin: A clinician selects the thread type and tissue plane. Support depends on the thread: Barbed threads can provide a mechanical lifting effect. Tissue responds as threads resorb: Effects are temporary and vary with anatomy and technique.

Schematic illustration. Technique and response vary. This explains a mechanism and does not specify treatment settings.

The material is placed: A clinician injects calcium hydroxylapatite in a gel carrier. The gel provides initial support: Early correction depends on formulation and placement. Collagen response develops: Tissue remodeling contributes as the gel carrier is absorbed.

Schematic illustration. Technique and response vary. This explains a mechanism and does not specify treatment settings.

Before your treatment

PDO Threads
Radiesse
2–4 weeks before

2 weeks before: Events: Do not book this within two weeks of an event.

Before you book: Dental work and flares: Get dental work done first, since wide mouth opening is discouraged for a few weeks.

2 weeks before: Events and dental: Do not book within two weeks of an event; bruising and swelling are normal, and swelling makes the early result look bigger.

Before you book: Infections and scans: Reschedule if there is an active infection, cold sore or inflamed cyst in the area.

The week before

A few days before: Blood thinners and alcohol: Ask the prescribing doctor before pausing a blood thinner.

A few days before: Blood thinners: Ask the prescribing doctor before pausing one.

The day before: Alcohol: None.

Day of treatment

PDO Threads
Radiesse
Before you arrive

Photos: Have photos taken sitting upright, in the light you will be reviewed in.

Not specified
Arrival & prep

You are assessed and marked sitting upright, because the face falls differently lying down.

The area is assessed sitting up, photographed, and the injection points marked.

Treatment

Small entry points are made near the hairline or temple.

A needle or cannula carries each thread along a planned path, the thread is anchored, and tension is adjusted while both sides are checked. A face takes 30 to 60 minutes. You feel pressure, tugging and an odd crunching rather than sharp pain. Soreness starts once the anesthetic wears off.

The product goes in deep, often onto or just above bone, through a needle or a blunt cannula, then each area is molded smooth.

A face takes about 20 to 40 minutes; hands and diluted treatments are quicker. You feel pressure and a deep ache more than sharp pain, with stinging at the entry points.

Before you leave

Swollen and tight, with small marks at the entry points.

Swollen, with small red marks at the entry points and possible bruising.

After your treatment

PDO Threads
Radiesse
First 24 hours

Days 1 to 7: Chewing, yawning and wide smiling are uncomfortable, and bruising at entry points is common.

Days 1 to 3: Bruises appear at needle sites and the area feels tender and firm — swelling and product, not a lump.

Days 2–7
Not specified

Days 4 to 14: Swelling drains and the area softens.

Weeks 2–4

Weeks 1 to 2: Small dimples and irregular lines along the threads usually smooth out.

Weeks 2 to 6: The over-lifted look relaxes into the actual result.

Weeks 2 to 12: The gel carrier is absorbed while new collagen replaces it.

Time to results

Immediately

Immediately

How long results last

6–12 months

About 12–18 months

Risks

Risks
  • Dimpling or puckering after two weeks
  • A thread you can see or feel
  • Uneven sides
  • Pain when you open your mouth
  • Redness, warmth, pus or fever
  • Numbness or a weak facial movement
  • Hair loss at a temple entry point
  • Most reactions are injection-site effects that settle within a week or two
  • A lump you can feel
  • A pale or white line under the skin
  • Spreading redness or tenderness
  • A new lump months later
  • Unevenness between the two sides

Cost

Per session

In the US a full-face thread lift commonly runs about $1,500 to $4,500, and more in some cities.

In the US a syringe usually runs about $700 to $1,200.

Insurance

Insurance does not cover it.

Insurance does not cover cosmetic use.

Questions

PDO Threads

Radiesse

Individual Questions
How much lift do threads actually give?

A few millimeters, and less once swelling settles. Enough to soften an early jowl or lift a brow slightly in the right face. Not enough to change the outline of a face — anyone promising that is describing surgery.

How long do PDO threads last?

The material dissolves in about four to six months. The visible effect usually lasts around six to twelve months, then fades gradually. Some firming from the collagen along the tracks remains after the lift has gone.

Is a thread lift the same as a facelift?

No, and that comparison is the main reason people are unhappy afterward. A facelift moves the deeper layer of the face and removes skin, under surgery, and lasts years. Threads gather skin along a stitch for months.

Does it hurt?

Under local anesthetic it feels more strange than painful — pressure and tugging. The days afterward are sore, especially chewing or yawning, and that usually settles within one to two weeks.

What if I get a dimple, or a thread shows?

Both are recognized and both are fixable, but they need the provider who placed them. Dimples in the first two weeks usually settle on their own. A thread poking through, or a dimple still there at two weeks, should be reported rather than waited out.

Are threads worth the money?

It depends what you are comparing them with. For mild early sagging, in someone who cannot or will not have surgery and understands it lasts under a year, they can be. For heavy jowls or a loose neck they are not, and the same money spent on volume or put toward surgery usually gives a result people are happier with.

Is Radiesse a filler or a collagen stimulator?

Both. The gel gives volume the day it is injected, and the calcium particles prompt new collagen over the following months as the gel is absorbed.

Can Radiesse be dissolved?

No. Hyaluronidase dissolves hyaluronic acid only, and there is no equivalent here. A result you dislike has to be managed with time, massage, steroid injection or, rarely, minor surgery. Understand that before you agree to it.

How long does it last?

Usually about 12 to 18 months in the face, then a gradual decline. Some people keep a little extra firmness from the collagen that formed, but that is a bonus, not the plan.

Why can it not go in my lips?

It is firm and lips move constantly. That gives a high rate of lumps, and a lump in a lip is visible and hard to treat in a product that cannot be dissolved. Hyaluronic acid is used there instead.

Will it show up on an X-ray or a dental scan?

Yes, on X-rays and CT scans, which is harmless. Tell your dentist and any radiologist so a bright patch is not investigated as something else.

Will it feel hard?

It should not, once swelling settles. Placed deep, it feels like your own tissue. Firmness you can feel through the skin after a few weeks usually means it sat too shallow — worth reporting.

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