Quick answer: Profhilo and polynucleotides are both injectable skin boosters, but they work differently. Profhilo uses high-purity hyaluronic acid to hydrate and bio-remodel the skin. Polynucleotides use purified DNA fragments to repair and regenerate, with a strong reputation for under-eye care. At Array Aesthetics in Belfast, both are delivered within a doctor-led, RQIA-regulated setting.
Many patients arrive at consultation already asking whether Profhilo or polynucleotides is the better treatment. The honest answer is that they do different jobs. One focuses on hydration and bio-remodelling. The other supports cellular repair and regeneration. Understanding which concern matters most is the key to choosing the right treatment, and very often the strongest plan involves both.
That distinction matters in practice because dermal fillers, skin boosters, and regenerative injectables are often grouped together as "the injectables," when in fact they sit in separate categories of treatment. Fillers add structure or volume beneath the skin. Skin boosters work on the skin itself. The patient who feels their face looks tired rather than deflated will almost always respond better to a skin booster than to a filler, which is the conversation Profhilo and polynucleotides are designed for.
How Profhilo works on the skin
Profhilo is one of the most established skin boosters in the UK and Ireland. Its active ingredient is high-purity hyaluronic acid, formulated in a stabilised but uncrosslinked state. Once injected at specific anatomical points across the face or neck, it spreads through the tissue rather than holding its shape locally, allowing it to act as a bio-remodelling agent rather than a filler.
The action is two-fold. Profhilo draws in and holds water within the skin, delivering an immediate uplift in hydration and surface quality. Over the weeks that follow, it stimulates new elastin and collagen, gradually firming the area and easing the appearance of mild laxity. Clinical research has reported measurable improvements in hydration, elasticity, and skin firmness following a standard Profhilo course.
A standard plan is two sessions, four weeks apart, with the result building across the following month. Profhilo is best suited to patients whose primary concern is the look of the skin itself: laxity, dryness, dullness, or a general loss of glow rather than volume loss.
How polynucleotides work on the skin
Polynucleotides take a different route to the same broad goal. The active ingredient is a chain of purified DNA fragments, most often derived from highly refined salmon DNA. Where Profhilo acts physically and chemically on the skin, polynucleotides act biologically. Once injected, they stimulate the fibroblasts responsible for producing collagen, elastin, and the wider matrix of healthy skin, supporting cellular repair, encouraging tissue regeneration, and exerting a measured anti-inflammatory effect,
The clinical signature of polynucleotides has emerged particularly around the under-eye. The skin in that area is thin, vascular, and prone to crepiness and dark circles that respond poorly to dermal filler. By improving skin quality at the under-eye rather than adding volume to it, polynucleotides often deliver the result patients were hoping for when they enquired about tear trough treatment, without the trade-offs that volume in that area can carry.
Treatment is typically two to three sessions, two to four weeks apart, with maintenance every six to twelve months. Beyond the under-eye, polynucleotides are used across the full face, neck, décolletage, hands, and selected body areas where the skin has thinned, scarred, or weathered.
Profhilo vs polynucleotides at a glance
If you're looking for a simple rule:
Choose Profhilo for hydration, glow, and mild skin laxity. Choose polynucleotides for repair, regeneration, and under-eye concerns. Consider both if skin quality and ageing are affecting multiple areas.
The table below sets out the same logic in more detail. Each treatment is designed to do something specific, and neither is simply a "better" version of the other.
Treatment Active ingredient Primary action Best suited to Profhilo High-purity hyaluronic acid Hydration, bio-remodelling, mild lifting Skin laxity, dryness, dull or tired skin Polynucleotides Purified DNA fragments Cellular repair, regeneration, anti-inflammatory Under-eye area, thin or compromised skin Combined approach Both, in sequence Hydration plus regeneration Patients addressing multiple layers of skin quality
Which treatment is right for your concern
The right choice often depends less on age and more on the dominant concern. In our Belfast clinic, certain patterns recur:
For patients in their thirties focused on preventative care, Profhilo is often the first recommendation. The aim is to support skin quality and hydration before laxity sets in, and a single course followed by light maintenance is usually enough to make a visible difference.
For patients in their forties and fifties noticing crepiness, dryness, or early laxity, the plan typically combines Profhilo across the face and neck with polynucleotides in any specific areas where the skin is thinner or more compromised. When both hydration and regeneration are concerns, treatments are sequenced as part of a personalised, doctor-designed plan.
For under-eye concerns, polynucleotides are usually the more honest answer. Dark circles, crepiness, and tired-looking under-eyes that resist filler often respond well, and the area is now one of the most frequently treated at the clinic.
For the neck, décolletage, and hands, Profhilo Belfast patients tend to favour the bio-remodelling action, particularly where age and sun exposure have begun to show. Polynucleotides can be added where skin quality has thinned beyond what hydration alone can address.
For brides and patients preparing for an event, both treatments are best started at least eight to twelve weeks ahead, allowing the full course to settle and the skin to reach peak quality on the day.
The published evidence behind both treatments
Profhilo and polynucleotides are supported by peer-reviewed clinical literature, with documented effects on hydration, elasticity, fibroblast stimulation, and tissue regeneration. Polynucleotides Belfast patients often comment that the regenerative reputation of the treatment is what drew them in, and the published evidence is part of why both treatments anchor the Array protocol rather than newer, less-tested options.
Skin booster Belfast: choosing the right plan
A skin booster Belfast consultation at Array Aesthetics begins with reading the skin in front of the clinician: skin type, skin quality, areas of concern, the patient's wider routine, and their goals across the next twelve months. The treatment that follows is part of a doctor-designed plan rather than a one-size protocol. Array Aesthetics is a doctor-led, RQIA-regulated clinic on the Lisburn Road in Belfast, co-founded by Dr Chris Hutton, an aesthetic trainer and Merz innovation partner, and recognised three times as Best Clinic Ireland and Northern Ireland at the Aesthetics Awards.
Frequently asked questions
Can Profhilo and polynucleotides be combined?
Yes, and in many cases this is the most clinically considered choice. Profhilo addresses overall skin quality and laxity across the face or neck, while polynucleotides target specific areas such as the under-eye or thinner, more compromised skin. The treatments are sequenced rather than stacked, with the plan set out at the initial consultation.
Which is better for under-eyes?
Polynucleotides are generally the more appropriate choice for the under-eye. The area is thin, vascular, and responds poorly to dermal filler in many patients. Polynucleotides improve skin quality at the under-eye rather than adding volume, which is often the result patients were originally hoping for.
How many sessions are needed?
Profhilo is typically delivered as two sessions, four weeks apart, with maintenance every six to nine months. Polynucleotides are usually delivered as two to three sessions, two to four weeks apart, with maintenance every six to twelve months. A combined plan is sequenced across the same overall timeframe.
How much do skin boosters cost in Belfast?
At Array Aesthetics, Profhilo is £300 per session (two-session course). Polynucleotides are £250 per session for under-eye treatment and £400 per session for full face. Full pricing is published openly on the Array Aesthetics website.
Booking a skin booster consultation
The question is rarely whether Profhilo or polynucleotides is better. The more useful question is what your skin needs most right now. For some patients the answer is hydration. For others it is repair. For many, it is a carefully sequenced combination of both. A consultation is the most direct way to translate that into a plan. Appointments are arranged through the booking system on the Array Aesthetics website, or by calling the clinic on 028 9457 1840.