Thread Lifting vs Filler: 1 Week vs 2 Days

We see cases like this so often that I wanted to write it down separately.

Last week, a 33-year-old patient

came in for a second consultation

about thread lifting vs filler.

She had thread lifting last year,

and this time she said, “Doctor, threads feel a bit too much for me,

can’t I lift it with filler?”

By this week, the clinic has started

to get busy with consultations like this.

Today, I’ll walk you through why that happens step by step.

The short answer.

Thread lifting pulls directly,

while filler rebuilds support in the space.

The deciding factor.

Recovery time is about 1 week for threads,

and 2–3 days for filler.

What we’ll cover today.

The key standard for choosing whether your face is better suited for threads or filler.

What you’ll find in this article

• The difference between how thread lifting and filler create lift

• Why recovery differs — 1 week for threads, 2–3 days for filler

• How to choose between a sagging face and a hollow face

What’s the difference between thread lifting and filler?

Threads provide lift; filler provides support.

Thread lifting involves placing dissolvable threads under the skin

to hook into tissue and pull it upward directly.

Here, a cog is the

small ridge on the surface of the thread.

MD Code filler is a filler approach that analyzes the face’s support points

and fills the necessary space.

MD stands for Medical Codes, and

in the clinic we explain it as a way of dividing the face into structural points

for assessment.

One point many people misunderstand is that

filler is not always just a

“volume-only” treatment.

If you restore support in areas like the front of the cheekbone, the temples,

or the area in front of the chin,

the skin can look as if it is being lifted up like a tent.

By contrast, thread lifting

is not a treatment for filling hollow spaces.

It is closer to directly holding up loosened tissue.

So although both are grouped under the word “lifting,”

their starting points are actually different.

Threads are designed to create the direction of pull,

while filler rebuilds the collapsed support beneath it.

Why does filler pull like a tent,

and why does thread lifting take 1 week?

Threads are pulled directly, so recovery takes longer.

Key insight from

Dr. Wi Young-jin

"If threads feel too much, MD Code filler can be an alternative.

Threads create direct pulling force, while filler fills space and creates

a tent-like lifting effect.

Downtime differs: 1 week vs 2–3 days, and longevity differs too—

6–12 months vs 12–18 months."

— Dr. Wi Young-jin (Beautystone Clinic, Hapjeong)

At first, I wasn’t even sure if this was the right approach,

but after hundreds of cases,

I learned something important.

What determines the lifting result is not

“how strong the treatment was,” but

“what kind of force was used to lift.”

Thread lifting uses the force that engages

fibrous septa within the subcutaneous layer.

Simply put, the thread catches the net-like structure under the skin

and guides its direction.

That is why the lift from threads is relatively noticeable

right after the procedure.

That said, along the path the thread passes through, swelling, tightness,

and small indentations can occur,

and these usually remain noticeable for about 5–7 days.

Filler works differently.

When support is created in the deep fat layer or above the periosteum,

the skin above can look stretched out like tent fabric.

Here’s an important number.

Thread lifting is generally considered to have a downtime of

about 1 week,

while MD Code filler is often viewed as about 2–3 days,

if bruising is not significant.

Longevity is also considered differently.

With thread lifting, the perceived tightness usually starts to lessen

within about 6–12 months,

and hyaluronic acid filler can maintain its shape for about

12–18 months depending on the area and product.

But that is not always a good thing.

You can create a lifting sensation with filler,

but in faces with significant true skin laxity,

it is difficult to achieve the same direct lift as threads.

One thing I must emphasize is that

putting in more filler does not necessarily

mean better lifting.

If the support point is off, the face can look heavy,

and especially in the front cheek area and around the nasolabial folds,

it can become overfilled.

Dr. Wi Young-jin’s key summary

Just because you’re afraid of threads doesn’t mean you should

automatically switch to filler.

If sagging is the main issue, threads are better;

if hollowness is the main issue, MD Code filler tends to look

more natural.

Recovery time and longevity are criteria for choosing,

not criteria for judging which is better.

Thread lifting vs MD Code filler,

which face is right for which?

Sagging calls for threads; hollowness calls for filler.

See which case matches you in the table below.

Honestly, once we look at facial expressions and movement in the clinic,

the difference between a face suited for threads and one suited for filler

becomes clear fairly quickly.

For someone whose skin near the corners of the mouth folds and droops,

I first think about threads,

and for someone whose front cheek support is weakened and whose nasolabial folds deepen,

I first consider filler.

One of my patients was 38 last year,

and at first she wanted thread lifting.

But when we looked at her from a 45-degree angle rather than from the front,

the real issue was not sagging so much as

insufficient support in the front cheek area.

We changed direction to MD Code filler,

and at her second visit,

she said it looked like she was less droopy even without threads.

Every case is different, of course,

but this is usually how I approach it.

If sagging is 7 and hollowness is 3, I lean toward threads;

if sagging is 3 and hollowness is 7,

I talk about filler first.

If it’s half and half, I don’t try to do everything at once,

and instead address the area that feels more uncomfortable first.

Thread lifting vs filler: 3 common questions in the clinic

Q1. If thread lifting feels intimidating,

can filler replace it?

A. This is hard to answer in one word,

because some faces can be replaced and others cannot.

In my consultations, when the hollowness is significant,

filler alone gives fairly good satisfaction in about six out of ten cases.

But if the skin along the jawline has truly folded and drooped,

trying to hold it up with filler can make the face look heavier.

Hmm… in that case, reducing the amount of threads or

changing the direction is usually the better choice.

Q2. If the effect is weak, can I

get another treatment right away?

A. The answer here is simply no.

If you add more or pull more while swelling is still present,

you won’t be able to tell what is the real result and what is swelling.

By my standard, I watch the face settle for at least 2–3 weeks.

Even in consultations last month with 43 patients, there were people who wanted to schedule the second treatment

too quickly,

but rushed cases often end up more misaligned.

Q3. Is there a difference between

bruising from threads and filler?

A. This is one of those questions that search results don’t explain very well.

With threads, discomfort often follows the line,

while with filler, discomfort is often around the injection point.

In general, both can cause bruising,

and truly large bruises are less common than one or two cases out of ten.

In clinical practice, patients with threads often feel more bothered by

the tight pulling sensation,

while with filler, many people describe a feeling of heaviness when pressed.

For most people it settles significantly within a week,

but if you have an important event,

it is safest to leave extra time.

If you take only one thing from today,

— think of threads as the force of pull, and filler as the force of support.

In the next post,

I’ll explain where you should not fill when trying to create a lifting effect

with MD Code filler.

This was Dr. Wi Young-jin.

Read more together

• Hongdae filler “Who performs it matters more than the price” (the difference when the doctor performs it directly)

• The claim that filler can fix dark circles is only half true (it may be a blood vessel issue)

• Hongdae lip filler cost and longevity, summarized by a specialist from Seoul National University.