Polysaccharide gel formulation having increased longevity

Abstract

Described herein are polysaccharide gel formulations including at least one inhibitor of polysaccharide degradation and methods of making the same. The methods described herein involve the steps of providing at least one polysaccharide and incorporating at least one inhibitor of degradation into the polysaccharide. In some embodiments, the incorporating step comprises 1) mixing the at least one inhibitor with the at least one polysaccharide at a highly hydrated state thereby encapsulating the at least one inhibitor in a polysaccharide network, and 2) dehydrating the polysaccharide network thereby controlling release kinetics or final swell ratio. In another embodiment, the incorporating step comprises 1) encapsulating at least one inhibitor into a biocompatible or biodegradable vessel and 2) combining the polysaccharide and the vessel into a gel formulation. The polysaccharide gel formulations described herein can be used for a variety of cosmetic applications.

We claim: 
     
         1 . A dermal filler gel comprising:
 a formulation comprising a crosslinked hyaluronic acid (HA) and chondroitin sulfate.   
     
     
         2 . The dermal filler gel of  claim 1  wherein the crosslinked hyaluronic acid comprises hyaluronic acid crosslinked with 1,4-butanediol diglycidyl ether (BDDE). 
     
     
         3 . The dermal filler gel of  claim 1  wherein the chondroitin sulfate is chondroitin sulfate A (CSA). 
     
     
         4 . The dermal filler gel of  claim 1  wherein the chondroitin sulfate is present in the formulation at a concentration of about 1% to about 40% by weight. 
     
     
         5 . The dermal filler gel of  claim 1  made by a process comprising the step of mixing a chondroitin sulfate into crosslinked HA while the crosslinked HA is in a hydrated state. 
     
     
         6 . The dermal filler gel of  claim 1  made by a process comprising the step of mixing a phosphate buffered saline supplemented with chondroitin sulfate into crosslinked HA. 
     
     
         7 . The dermal filler gel of  claim 1  useful for treating nasolabial folds.