Lip Fillers
Lip filler injection is a quick cosmetic enhancement that can be done to bring back a fuller, softer more shaped lip.
As men and women age, the shape, fullness, and even symmetry of their lips can change significantly. For many, these changes can have a negative impact on self-image and self-esteem.
Whether you want to get back to the full, luscious lips you had in your teens and twenties, or addressing asymmetries and/or anatomical deficits, or just looking for the trendy, plump lips seen on celebrities, lip fillers may be the perfect procedure for you. Contact Salas Plastic Surgery for a lip filler consultation in Miami.
What are Lip Fillers?
As people age, the skin around the lips begins to wrinkle, and the lips themselves lose volume. The skin becomes less elastic, and the lips change shape. This loss of form also affects the appearance of the rest of the face. Over time, you might lose the self-confidence in your appearance that you once had.
Most lip fillers are composed of hyaluronic acid, a substance naturally found in the body. These hyaluronic acid fillers can help change the volume, shape, and structure of the lips. Hyaluronic acid Lip fillers do not harm your body and will be absorbed back into the body over time. Most lip fillers commonly last for about six to nine months with some as long as 1 year.
Benefits of Lip Fillers
Most people who choose lip fillers do so for aesthetic/cosmetic reasons. They want their lips to have the pretty shape and fullness of their youth or aspire to have a more ideal shape and size. However, lip fillers have other benefits to consider.
- Lip fillers can improve the appearance of the lips and help balance the surrounding area of the face.
- Lip fillers reduce the fine lines that develop as you age, leaving the mouth area fuller and with less noticeable wrinkles.
- Lip fillers can help even out mismatched or uneven lips.
- Lip fillers are customizable to each person. Dr. Salas can create your preference of full lips and lip shape by adjusting the amount and location of the dermal filler injections.
- Lip fillers are not permanent and will reduce over time as they are absorbed back into the body.
How to Prepare for Lip Injections
Some preparations help the process to go smoothly and improve the outcome of lip injections.
- Consultation: In the meeting, Dr. Salas will examine your lips. He will discuss your goals for lip injections and take “before” photos to compare to the “after” lip injections photos.
- The doctor may recommend discontinuing Advil, Motrin, and Aleve since they can lead to a greater chance of bruising.
- It is best to avoid alcohol for 24 hours before the lip injections.
- Tell the doctor if you are prone to cold sore breakouts as the needle injections might cause a flare-up.
- Let your doctor know of any allergies.
What to Expect During a Lip Filler Procedure
Knowing what to expect at a lip filler procedure will help you better prepare and may even ease your nerves a little.
First, the staff will apply a prescription-level numbing cream that sits on the lips so that you feel little to no pain during the injections. After about 15-20 minutes, the numbing cream is removed and the lips are cleaned well.
An additional element of preparation at Salas Plastic Surgery is using the Pronox gas system (laughing gas) to improve your comfort level and decrease your pain and anxiety. Alternatively, a local lip block injection may be used to completely numb the area, this technique is more often used in very sensitive patients or extensive lip structure adjustments.
After numbing, Dr. Salas injects the dermal filler to create the look you discussed. Most patients say the injection feels like a small pinch since the numbing helps to minimize the pain. After the injections, they apply lip ointment to soothe the areas and encourage you to apply ice once you are home. The additional icing helps to prevent swelling and bruising.
Potential Side Effects and Risks
The most common side effects of having lip injections are swelling and bruising. Keeping the ice on various parts of your lips helps with the swelling and bruising. Take acetaminophen or ibuprofen for the discomfort if needed. You can also try an antihistamine to help with the swelling.
Use only a gentle cleanser on your lips for the first few days and consider keeping your lips hydrated with vitamin E oil. After 24 hours, you may use makeup as usual.
You should expect the swelling and bruising to be more noticeable on the second day. You might even notice some parts of your lips look more prominent than others. There is no need to be alarmed because these side effects are completely normal.
Increased swelling in some areas of the lips does not necessarily indicate too much dermal filler. Instead, since your body is adjusting and the filler is hydrophilic (meaning it draws water), some features may swell more than others in transition to the final result.
Generally, the swelling and bruising will lessen by day two after injections. Each day after will bring decreased swelling. By the two-week mark, your lips should look fresh and complete with minimal to no lingering bruising or swelling.
By the third week, you might notice that your lips may have some further adjustments or volume you would like to add. Make a follow-up appointment with Dr. Salas, and more filler can be injected into the parts that you would like to be fuller. Another standard treatment is to use a PDO thread on the upper lip to create a lip flip. The lip flip pairs well with dermal lip fillers to achieve the perfect pout.
What are the Best Injectables for Lips?
The most commonly known injectable dermal fillers for lips are the Restylane and Juvederm line of fillers. They are both hyaluronic acid-based dermal fillers with excellent results. But, unfortunately, dermal lip fillers are not one-size-fits-all.
It might not seem like there should be a vast difference between the options of fillers, but there is. So how does your doctor know which filler is suitable for your lips? The factors that influence which lip filler works best can vary.
- The location of injections on the lips (on the edges, the lip body, or the lip body) impacts the filler choice.
- How much stiffness is required to achieve the desired result is another factor.
- The patient’s desired lip volume vs. current volume
- The filler cost may impact the choice of fillers, although we recommend choosing by what’s best for the result, not by cost.
Restylane Dermal Filler
Restylane is known for decreasing lip lines and creating fuller lips. Many doctors use Restylane Brand fillers for plumping up the lips to help decrease the lines and wrinkles. As the first dermal filler approved by the FDA, Restylane is very safe for any lip enhancement procedure.
Many doctors also use Restylane for plumping up the lips to remove the lines and wrinkles. A Restylane treatment generally lasts 20-30 minutes. Restylane results show immediately and may last up to one year before needing another injection.
Juvederm Dermal Filler
Juvederm has various products. Juvederm Volbella and Vollure smooth out lines and wrinkles around lips, while Juvederm Ultra XC with lidocaine plumps up the lip volume. Juvederm treatments also last 20-30 minutes. Juvederm results are immediate and continue to improve over the next several days. Juvederm dermal fillers may last up to one year before needing another injection.
Common Questions About Lip Fillers
Since lips come in various shapes and sizes, injecting aims to enhance the natural lip shape and contour for a pleasing balance with the other facial features. Many doctors aim to define the Cupid’s Bow at the top of the lip while smoothing the upper lip line. Most lips have a fuller lower lip than the upper. Lip injections aim to maintain this proportion while improving the overall appearance.
Both Restylane and Juvederm may last from 6-12 months for most patients. If you have dermal fillers and see areas that need more injections to balance out the look of the lips, make an appointment with your doctor. Once the swelling resolves, they can see where to touch up the lips for an aesthetically pleasing and balanced appearance.
While dermal lip fillers cost anywhere from $500-$2,000, depending on where you are having the procedure, the average cost is around $700 for one syringe. Most patients need more than one syringe to achieve the natural, full lip look they want. The average syringe number is one to three at each visit.
Juvederm produces results right away and it creates a voluminous, pillowy look. Restylane has a more subtle, fuller lip look and different versions may be used to smooth out the lines and wrinkles around the lips.
Lip injections are for adding subtle volume and definition to the lip lines. A lip flip focuses on the shape of the upper lip, especially when the upper lip is noticeably thinner than the bottom lip. A lip flip is an excellent choice to reduce a gummy smile.
Lip fillers are composed of hyaluronic acid, which is a naturally occurring substance in your body. Hyaluronic acid works by attracting water. So when the doctor injects hyaluronic acid into the lips, the result is fuller, softer lips with fewer lines and wrinkles because the hyaluronic acid attracts and traps the water in your lips.
Depending on how much hyaluronic acid the doctor injects, the lips will appear fuller, more voluminous, and more defined. Over time, the body absorbs the hyaluronic acid, which takes anywhere from 6-12 months, and you will need to have lip injections again.
Yes, lips do go back to normal after injections, but this takes several months since your body slowly absorbs the hyaluronic acid back into its system. Once reabsorbed, you must have dermal filler lip injections again to achieve the same results.
If you don’t like the look of the lips after the injections, your doctor can dissolve the dermal fillers using hyaluronidase. Hyaluronidase can correct irregularities (which happen infrequently) or dissolve the hyaluronic acid lip fillers completely if you don’t like the result.
Lip Filler Alternatives
Dermal lip fillers are well known to be successful at achieving a fuller, more youthful lip look. However, when you want a more permanent lip change, you might consider a lip lift in which the surgeon shortens a long upper lip in surgery to improve the vertical appearance of the cupid’s bow. This procedure also smooths out the upper lip line and pulls the lip up and out for a fuller appearance.
Another less often used permanent procedure is permanent lip augmentation. The surgeon inserts a soft, pliable silicone lip implant that enhances the fullness of the lips while tapering out at the ends to keep a good corner crease. One advantage of lip augmentation is that the lip implant can be changed or removed at any time. Permanent lip augmentation is a procedure that happens under local anesthesia in the office and lasts about one hour. The swelling and bruising subside after the first week to reveal enhanced, fuller lips.
If you are happy with the fullness of your lips but would like to remove the vertical lines and wrinkles, consider lip laser resurfacing. Lip laser resurfacing removes all of the deep lines around the mouth by tightening and smoothing the skin. The time from lasering to seeing fresh, smooth skin around the lips is 7-10 days. Therefore, you can have lip laser resurfacing as many times as you want to achieve a line-free appearance around your lips.
Schedule a Consultation for Lip Fillers in Miami
The best way to know if you need dermal lip fillers or another procedure to achieve your aesthetic goals is to schedule a private appointment with your plastic surgeon to discuss your expectations and goals. Everyone is different and has unique facial features, including lips. Tailoring a treatment plan to fit your desires and needs is what we do best. So, schedule a consultation for lip fillers with Dr.Salas in Miami today, and get the beautiful lip look you desire.
