Sunekos in London

What Sunekos is

Sunekos is an injectable skin booster that combines hyaluronic acid with amino acids, the building blocks skin uses to make collagen and elastin. It is not a filler and does not add volume. Given as a short course, it improves hydration, texture and fine lines, and is particularly useful for the crepey, tired look around the eyes.

The formulation pairs unstabilised hyaluronic acid with a specific blend of six amino acids: glycine, L-proline, L-leucine, L-lysine, L-alanine and L-valine. The hyaluronic acid hydrates the skin and creates a favourable environment, while the amino acids supply the raw materials that fibroblasts, the skin’s collagen-making cells, need to build new collagen and elastin. In other words, Sunekos supports the skin’s own repair rather than imitating a result. It is classed as an injectable medical device, and at our Islington clinic it is offered after a skin consultation.

What that means in practice

Three consequences follow from the way Sunekos works, and they clear up most of the confusion found online.

• It does not change shape. Sunekos adds no meaningful volume. A flattened cheek or a deep fold between nose and mouth is a different conversation, and if that is your real concern we will say so and discuss skin boosters versus fillers with you.
• Results build, then gradually fade. Because the mechanism is biological, improvement appears over the weeks of the course and usually lasts several months before maintenance makes sense.
• The starting point matters. Skin with reasonable reserves responds well. Heavily sun-damaged or very lax skin responds more slowly and within honest limits, and sometimes a combined plan, or a different treatment, is better.

The aim is always natural-looking skin that looks like yours on a good week, not a treated look.

Sunekos for tired eyes

Sunekos is best known for the under-eye area. Fine crepiness, mild hollowing and the dull, slightly shadowed look that reads as permanent tiredness are the classic reasons people ask for it. The formulation is gentle enough for the thin skin around the eyes, and improvement typically shows as better texture and resilience, a brighter under-eye and make-up that sits more evenly.

It is also the area where the injector’s understanding of anatomy matters most. The blood vessels around the eye are unforgiving of imprecision. Dr Vishal Patel’s training includes a facial anatomy and cadaver course, and as a dentist he works daily around the vessels, nerves and muscles of the mid and lower face. Whoever you see, it is reasonable to ask how they would recognise and manage a vascular problem near the eye; the answer tells you more than a gallery of photographs.

Beyond the eyes, Sunekos can be used across the face for general skin quality, on the neck and on the backs of the hands. Each area has its own depth, dose and realistic ceiling, which we explain at consultation.

Who Sunekos suits, and who should wait

Sunekos tends to suit people in their thirties and beyond whose skin looks tired, dehydrated or finely lined, especially around the eyes, and who are happy to attend a short course. It also suits people who want a gentle, gradual improvement in skin quality rather than any change in shape. If a single-session booster appeals instead, see Volite.

It is less suitable where the main concern is true pigment under the eyes, marked hollowing or significant laxity, which have honest limits with any booster. We do not treat during pregnancy or breastfeeding, over active infection or a cold sore, or where there has been a significant reaction to hyaluronic acid. Certain medical conditions and blood-thinning medication need discussion first. Where medical treatment is needed, we refer you to your GP or a dermatologist.

Is Sunekos better than Profhilo?

Neither is better overall; they suit different skin. Sunekos is often chosen for the delicate under-eye area and fine crepey lines. Profhilo spreads widely for broad hydration and early laxity across the face and neck. Many people benefit from one or the other, chosen at consultation.

Profhilo is a stabilised hyaluronic acid given as two sessions a month apart, and its slow spread gives a subtle firming effect alongside hydration. Sunekos supplies raw materials on a faster rhythm and is more commonly used close to the eyes. Polynucleotides are a third option, acting as a repair signal for very thin, fragile or sun-damaged skin. The three overlap but are not interchangeable, and some faces do best with one followed later by another. Our skin boosters guide maps the whole category. For another established option, see Restylane Skinboosters.

Is Sunekos better than microneedling?

They work differently. Microneedling is better for texture and scarring; Sunekos is better for hydration and crepiness, especially around the eyes. They can be combined.

When we combine them, we space the treatments rather than doing both on the same day, so the skin can recover and respond to each. A typical plan might start with a Sunekos course for hydration and follow with microneedling for texture, or the other way round, depending on which concern matters most to you.

What to expect

Most people have a course of four sessions, one to two weeks apart, with small bumps that settle within a day. Improvement builds over the course and usually lasts several months. Prescribed and administered by Dr Vishal Patel, BDS, MSc Aesthetic & Restorative Dentistry, GDC 103127, the clinic’s sole aesthetic prescriber.

Your first visit is a consultation. We examine your skin, take baseline photographs, go through your medical history and discuss whether a booster is the right category for what you see in the mirror, and if so, which one. Different preparations of Sunekos exist for lighter hydration or more structural support, and which one we use, and whether we treat the eye area or the full face, is decided at this point.

Each treatment session is brief. Numbing cream is applied, followed by a series of very fine injections. Small raised bumps at the injection points settle within a day or so, and occasionally a small bruise appears and fades within a week. Most people return to normal life straight away, keeping make-up off the points for a day and avoiding saunas, hot baths and hard exercise for 48 hours.

Sunekos results

Change follows the biology. Hydration usually registers within the first fortnight. The collagen and elastin response builds over the following weeks, and the most useful time to judge the result is around a month after the final session. We review against your baseline photographs rather than memory. Results usually last several months, after which some people repeat a course annually and others choose occasional single top-up sessions. Maintenance is a choice, not an obligation, and results vary from person to person.

Safety

Sunekos has a well-established safety profile when given correctly. Expected effects are small bumps, mild redness and occasional bruising at the injection points. Rarer effects include infection, prolonged swelling and, as with any injection near the eyes, a very small risk of a vascular problem. We use sterile technique, inject slowly and conservatively, and review you if anything concerns you after treatment.

Sunekos cost in Islington

• Skin boosters, including Sunekos: from £250 per session
• Profhilo, for comparison: £350, or £625 for two sessions
• Skin and aesthetic consultation: £65, redeemable in full against treatment

Because Sunekos is given as a course, the useful figure is the cost of the whole course rather than one visit. We confirm the number of sessions, the area and the total in writing before anything is booked. When comparing prices elsewhere, check whether a low per-session figure reflects a partial dose or a shortened course. Finance is available at 0% APR over 12 months.

Why have it with us

Dr Vishal Patel qualified in dentistry at Liverpool, holds an MSc in Aesthetic & Restorative Dentistry from Manchester and has around 20 years in dentistry, including 10 years in facial aesthetics. He plans and carries out every skin booster treatment at the clinic himself. We will recommend the booster that suits your skin, not the one a clinic is keenest to sell, and we will tell you when a booster is not the right answer.

His training includes the International Fellowship in Advanced Aesthetic Science and a facial anatomy and cadaver course with Dr Ali Pirayesh at the University of Amsterdam, along with Harley Academy and IBSA training. The clinic is at 222 Essex Road, Islington, London N1 3AP, two minutes from Essex Road station and a short ride from Angel, Highbury, Canonbury, Hackney and Stoke Newington. Many patients cycle or use a Lime or Forest e-bike. Buses 38, 56, 73, 341 and 476 stop on Essex Road, and we see patients Monday to Friday, 8am to 7pm, by appointment. Since 2009 the clinic has been rated 4.7 stars from more than 300 Google reviews.

Clinically reviewed by Dr Vishal Patel · BDS · MSc Aesthetic & Restorative Dentistry · GDC 103127. Last reviewed 1 October 2026.

Clinical leadDr Vishal Patel, GDC 103127

Experience10 years in facial aesthetics

TrainedIFAAS · IBSA · NeoStrata

Rated4.7★ · 300+ Google reviews

Clinic222 Essex Road, N1 · since 2009

Who treats you

Dr Vishal Patel

Clinical lead · Sole aesthetic prescriber · 10 years in facial aesthetics

BDS Liverpool · MSc Aesthetic & Restorative Dentistry (Manchester) · GDC 103127 · International Fellowship in Advanced Aesthetic Science (IFAAS) · Facial anatomy and cadaver course with Dr Ali Pirayesh, University of Amsterdam · Harley Academy · IBSA and NeoStrata trained

We will tell you when a treatment is not the right answer. That honesty is part of the treatment.

Read Dr Patel’s profile →