When it comes to lip augmentation, our goal at The Naderi Center in Chevy Chase and Reston is for our patients to achieve natural results that help to enhance their facial balance and overall aesthetics. Lip enhancement procedures can add fullness to thin lips, decrease wrinkles around the mouth, and improve lip contour to create better harmony between the lips and the other facial features. Enhancing the volume of the lips with injectable fillers restores a youthful fullness often lost with age. The surgeons at the Naderi Center understand the key to a beautiful lip enhancement procedure is to maintain appropriate contour and balance between the upper and lower lips. Each procedure is customized to meet the unique needs of the patient.
What to Expect During a Lip Enhancement Consultation
We have experience with the many different options available to enlarge or enhance the size and shape of the lips. During a consultation, we will evaluate the patient’s face and suggest the best option for their unique aesthetic goals. We consider each patient’s unique facial contours when determining the best procedures for accomplishing their aesthetic goals.
Options for lip enhancement include fat injections, lip filler injections, dermal grafting, vermillion advancement, lip implants, and lip lifting. Lip fillers, grafts, and implants can physically change the volume of a patient’s lips, while lip lifts and vermillion advancement can alter the shape and increase the width of a patient’s lips.
Lip injections using natural or synthetic fillers can keep a patient’s lips plump for months at a time. Lip implants and other surgical procedures can also be performed for a more permanent solution. Other options include lip lifts, vermilion (lip) advancement and permanent makeup.
The consultation is an ideal opportunity to get to know our surgeons and ask questions. Patients will be able to get personalized recommendations and get the information they need to make a decision.
Good Candidates for Lip Enhancement
Good candidates for lip enhancement are healthy women and men who wish to plump up thin lips, create a fuller look or rejuvenate aging lips. If a patient smiles and their top lip or both lips disappear, they may benefit from lip augmentation. If they feel their lips are too large and overwhelm their face, lip reduction surgery may be an option. Before-and-after photos can be useful in helping patients to set their expectations and make an informed decision.
Types of Lip Enhancement Procedures
The doctors at The Naderi Center for Rhinoplasty & Cosmetic Surgery tailor each procedure to meet the patient’s aesthetic goals They can improve uneven lips and the shape of their mouth, or a “gummy smile.” After lip enhancement, a patient’s lips will be fuller and have an improved contour while maintaining the appropriate facial balance. Types of lip enhancement procedures include:
Fat Transfer
During a fat transfer to the lips, fat from the patient’s own body is first removed with liposuction from another area of their body. The fat is then cleaned and purified before being injected into the lips. Injections may need to be repeated until the desired result is attained. Some of the fat that is transferred to the lip area will establish itself in the new location, making this a semi-permanent lip augmentation solution.
Injectable Fillers
Fillers made from natural or synthetic biocompatible material act as a fat substitute to plump the lips. One treatment generally produces the desired results, which can last for about 6-12 months on average. Results, however, are temporary and require repeat injections to maintain the look. Lip injections produce a very natural-looking result.
Photos are 6 years apart with annual touch up maintenance injections, During which this patient trusted our
doctors at the Naderi Center with a variety of different fillers including Restylane Silk, Juvederm Vollure & Juvederm Ultra.
Lip injections are performed as an in-office procedure and generally take less than an hour to complete. Patients receive a topical numbing cream or a dental block. Most lip fillers contain a numbing medication, enabling patients to tolerate this procedure without a dental block. They can help patients add volume to deflated lips, define the borders and shape of their lips, soften “lipstick lines,” reverse downturned corners of the mouth, and provide more red lip show.
Dermal Grafts
A permanent method of lip augmentation can be accomplished by surgically advancing the lip forward, with incisions located inside the mouth. A dermal fat graft, taken from the deeper layers of the skin, may then be positioned under the mucosa, which is the lining of the lip, adding extra volume
Vermilion Advancement
This procedure involves an incision made along the border of the colored portion of the lips, followed by the removal of a strip of skin outside the border. The surgeon then pulls the colored portion of the lip forward to increase the lip area.
Lip Implants
Lip implants can be inserted through tiny incisions located inside the corners of the mouth. There are many natural or synthetic implant options available. This is a permanent augmentation option.
Before & After Lip Implants
Lip Lift Surgery
Removing extra skin in the lips and lifting them will help a downward sloping mouth with loose lip skin. An incision is made under the nose and the skin is shortened, pulling up the lips. Other lift techniques can shorten the upper lip to expose more teeth. A downward-turned mouth can be lifted with small upward sutures removed in four to five days.
Recovering From Lip Augmentation
Swelling of the lips is common after augmentation; consequently; for at least three days, a patient’s lips will appear larger than their final result. Bruising can occur after lip injections, generally resolving in one week. Lips typically feel tender for the first few days post-injection, but will feel natural and normal after the initial swelling and bruising resolves.
Cold compresses can be applied to the operative site to reduce swelling, bruising and pain. A liquid-only diet for one or two days is suggested for surgical patients. While a patient’s activities will be restricted, they should be mobile the first day of their surgery.
Frequently Asked Questions About Lip Augmentation
What is the definition of lip augmentation?
A procedure intended to augment and improve the shape of a lip that has not been affected by trauma or congenital deformity is known as lip augmentation. In most cases, the upper tip is treated more and to a greater degree than the lower lip.
Are silicone injections safe for lips?
Silicone injections are an unsafe and unacceptable option as lip filler. These injections are not FDA approved and are often offered by unlicensed individuals. They should be avoided.
Am I a candidate for lip implants?
Adults in good overall health looking to enhance their lips may be candidates for lip implants. If you have naturally thin lips or an age-related decrease in lip volume, you will most likely experience exceptional results from your procedure. It is important to have reasonable expectations for the outcome of your procedure.
Our team will work with patients and go over before-and-after photos to help them fully understand the procedure and associated risk before moving forward.
How long will lip augmentation results last?
Fat injections may require multiple injections but can potentially produce permanent results. The duration of filler injection results depend on the type of filler used. Some fillers last from three to six months, while others last almost a year. Essentially permanent results are obtained with dermal grafting, lip implants, lip lifting, and vermilion advancement.
Is lip augmentation reversible?
When a lip implant is used, lip augmentation is reversible because it can be removed during a subsequent surgery. Lip augmentation with injectables may also be reversed.
Does lip enhancement always result in large lips?
Some patients hope for a conservative degree of lip enhancement rather than large, dramatic lips. Our team is sensitive to each patient’s preferences and will ensure that the procedure they perform leads to each patient’s desired size and shape.
What risks are associated with lip enhancement?
Significant complications from lip enhancement are infrequent. Lip enhancement is usually performed without major problems.
Our Surgeons
At The Naderi Center, our skilled plastic surgeons are all experienced in lip augmentation, fillers, and lip enhancement procedures. Each comes from a distinguished background and has the skill to help patients achieve their goals.
- Dr. Naderi is a double board-certified plastic surgeon and a clinical instructor who teaches other surgeons the fine art of injecting dermal lip fillers.
- Dr. Kulak is a fellowship-trained facial plastic surgeon, who specializes in facial rejuvenation.
- Dr. Anderson is a top plastic surgeon and an assistant professor at the prestigious Emory University. She is renowned for her expert techniques in dermal lip fillers.
Schedule a Lip Augmentation Consultation at The Naderi Center
If you’d like fuller, younger, and more attractive lips, we invite you to schedule a lip augmentation consultation at the Naderi Center in Chevy Chase, Maryland or Northern Virginia. Call our Chevy Chase, Maryland office at 301-222-2020; or Reston, Virginia office at 703-481-0002.