Dermal Fillers for Lips
To follow the previous post on lip rejuvenation, here I am going to talk about using dermal fillers for lip augmentation.
Term “dermal filler” is kind of a misnomer. Although in some areas, fillers are used to be injected into the dermis (the deeper layer of skin that has connective tissue); fillers are not necessarily injected in to the dermis. For example, in lip augmentation, fillers are mainly injected in deeper muscle layers.
Fillers, if used by qualified injectors like plastic surgeons and qualified trained aestheticians, are very safe and effective - although no procedure is risk free.
Lip augmentation using fillers is a temporary treatment that depend on type of the filler and patient’s metabolism, can last between 6 mo to more than a year. The half life of fillers around the mouth is usually shorter because of extensive motion of the orbicularis oris muscle (lip muscle) and other muscles around the mouth that would facilitate breakdown of fillers.
It is critical to communicate your goals and expectations with your surgeon during the consultation for filler injection. Every patient is different, and even each side of each lip in the same patient is different from the other side. My goal is always to achieve natural results that enhance the natural look of the lips and also to maintain the harmony between lips and the rest of the face.
Next time you see someone who’s lips look fake, ask yourself “what makes it look fake?” most of the times it is lack of harmony between lips and the rest of the face as well as violation of natural facial proportions.
Knowledge of facial anatomy, knowledge of aesthetic facial analysis, knowledge of tissue and filler biomechanics and the artistic look are factors that make all the difference. And to get all these factors together, it takes years of training and passion for these cases!
Here is an example:
This lovely patient of mine in her 60s came to see me for an operation on her ears, during the consultation she expressed interest in having a lip augmentation using fillers.
However, she was very anxious about having unnatural looking lips! Assured her that my goal is always to achieve natural results and improve the harmony without the fake look.
As her first filler treatment, she received a total of 1 mL of Juvederm Ultra XC in her upper and lower lips as well as the nasolabial fold. This also helps with the wrinkles around the mouth to some degree.
It is amazing how much improvement you can make with only 1 cc filler if you use the right technique; improve the look but not make the face look fake.
Every patient’s results will be different based on their lip shape before injection, their age and their goals and all these need to be discussed and considered at the consultation.
I also have a trick to show you how your lips with roughly look like after filler injection, without injecting fillers! If you are curious, ask me about it at your consultation!
Besides lip augmentation, dermal fillers have a wide variety of indications in face as well as other areas of body.
If you are interested in dermal filler injection, book your free consultation today!
