Beautiful lips can enhance your look like no other feature can. Lip filler and contouring treatments allow you to create a look that is subtle but different, by enhancing the natural look of your lips. Lip fillers are a type of dermal filler and consist of synthetic hyaluronic acid (HA) — HA is a natural substance in your body.
You might want to enlarge the size of your lips for many reasons, including:
- Restoring a previous lip size. As you age, your lips may get smaller or thinner, your philtrum (the groove between your upper lip and septum) may get longer and flatter and the distance between the corners of your mouth (intercommissural distance) may increase.
- Correcting the shape of your lips. It is common for your lips to be different sizes or shapes (asymmetrical).
- Smoothing wrinkles. When you smile or laugh, wrinkles sometimes develop on the sides of your mouth. Smoker lines (barcode lines) can be also softened with lip enhancement.
- Boosting confidence. Lip fillers are natural make-up and can help improve your self-esteem and body image.
Before procedure
There is no special preparation needed. Your skin will be cleaned and prepared for procedure. Sometimes topical anaesthetics can be applied to your lips. This will numb your lips so you won’t feel any pain and the process is as comfortable as possible.
Description
During a lip filler procedure, your healthcare provider will use a thin needle to inject the lip filler into any or all parts of your lips, including the edges of your lips (vermillion border), the curve in the centre of your upper lip (Cupid’s bow) and your oral commissures (corners of your mouth). You won’t feel pain because fillers also contain a local anaesthetic, but you may feel a pinching sensation. On average, your healthcare provider will insert 1 millilitre (mL) of lip filler into your lips, which is about one-fifth of a teaspoon. The needle won’t go deeper than 2.5 millimetres (mm) into your skin.
After the procedure is complete, your healthcare provider may gently massage your lips so that they absorb the filler. You may continue to ice your lips as well.
Postoperative instructions:
- Apply an ice pack for up to 10 minutes to reduce inflammation, pain and swelling.
- Avoid wearing lipstick, lip balm or any other product on your lips for at least 24 hours.
- Refrain from touching or puckering your lips, including kissing and sipping from a straw.
- Be careful brushing your teeth.
- Drink plenty of water.
- Avoid exercising for at least 24 hours.
- Your lips may be swollen, sensitive and bruised. Swelling usually goes away after 24 to 48 hours, but it may take up to a week.
What are the advantages of lip fillers?
There are many advantages to lip fillers, including:
- They are safe, and the lip filler procedure is also safe — there is a low risk of complications or side effects.
- They can boost your self-esteem.
- They are reversible. If you are not happy with how you look, your healthcare provider can inject an enzyme (hyaluronidase) to dissolve your lip filler.
What are the risks of lip fillers?
Getting lip fillers poses some risks, luckily most are reversible:
- Bleeding and pain at the injection sites.
- Cold sore reactivation.
- Discoloration or tenderness.
- Infection.
- Tissue death (vascular compromise), which can occur if lip filler is injected into or around an artery.
- Your lips may be of different sizes (asymmetry).
- The lip filler may bleed into other areas of your face, usually toward the nose (migration).
Additional information:
Are lip fillers bad for you? Lip fillers are a medical treatment. Lip fillers are very safe when performed by an experienced healthcare provider, including a plastic surgeon, maxillofacial surgeon, dermatologist or cosmetic surgeon. You shouldn’t get lip fillers from a beauty salon or spa.
Will lip fillers ruin your lips? If you don’t get lip fillers from an experienced healthcare provider, you risk ruining your lips. Your lips may permanently stretch, the tissue surrounding your lips may die, the lip filler may harden or the injection sites may get infected.
Do lip fillers hurt? You may experience mild pain at your injection sites. The pain should go away after 12 to 24 hours.
Are lip fillers permanent? Lip fillers aren’t permanent. They slowly wear away over time, usually 9 to 15 months after you get them, depending on your metabolism. You may need routine touch-up treatments to maintain your desired volume. Never get done your lips with permanent fillers!
Can you get lip fillers while pregnant? There haven’t been any studies on whether it’s safe to get lip fillers during pregnancy. As a result, the FDA hasn’t approved the use of lip fillers while pregnant.