Some of our patients prefer subtlety in their results: a more noticeable pout, better-defined features, and other small changes. Other patients want dramatic and unmistakable fullness. By providing both surgical options and temporary injectable treatments, patients can choose the treatment that best meets their needs.
Benefits of Lip Augmentation
There are three big reasons to consider lip augmentation:
- Greater volume. Add natural-looking fullness to your lips for a more pronounced pout.
- Better definition. The lips’ features tend to flatten and become indistinct with age. Restoring these features can highlight your lips and make a big difference in how youthful you look.
- Low-commitment aesthetic improvement. Patients can start with non-surgical solutions at SILK Medical Spa. Effects from these treatments only last for up to one year.
At our medical spa, a highly trained and experienced nurse can provide injectable dermal fillers from JUVÉDERM®, Restylane®, and other premium providers. Because effects aren’t permanent, patients can decide to stop treatment, continue with injectables, or explore surgical lip augmentation with Dr. Sanders.
Am I a Candidate for Lip Augmentation?
Because Dr. Sanders’ practice offers so many different levels of treatment, you are likely a good candidate for lip augmentation regardless of the degree of effect you’d like to get.
In general, injectable lip augmentation is right for you if:
- You are just beginning to explore aesthetic improvement for your lips.
- You want to add fullness and definition to your features but aren’t ready for a permanent change.
- You’d like noticeable improvement but prefer not to have surgery.
Beyond increasing volume, injectable treatments can emphasize the features that make for aesthetically pleasing lips. These include the vermillion border: that line separating the pink of your lips from the rest of the skin. Your nurse may also add filler to restore the philtral columns (the lines that create a groove below your nose). In your consultation, our aesthetic staff can help you see how these changes can affect your appearance.
With surgical lip augmentation, Dr. Sanders will place small silicone implants in targeted locations, providing permanent fullness and definition. It’s a local anesthesia procedure; Dr. Sanders uses a dental block to make the experience nearly painless, and our office provides a variety of amenities to help patients pass the time.
You may want to consider surgical lip augmentation if:
- You’ve been getting injectable treatments for a number of years and know clearly what type of results you’d like to have after surgery.
- You can take a few days of downtime to get the results you want.
What Is the Recovery from Lip Augmentation Like?
Injectable lip augmentation is a very manageable procedure. Most of our patients return to normal activities within a day or two, and if you don’t mind some residual bruising, you should be fine by the night following treatment. SILK Medical Spa staff may use an advanced cannula technique to apply the filler with fewer punctures. As a result, you should feel better faster. The effects of injectable products last about 6-12 months.
If you opt for surgical lip augmentation, you’ll receive local anesthesia and oral sedation so that you can rest throughout the surgery and experience no pain. Swelling should go down within five days, and most people are back into their normal daily schedule within a couple of weeks.
Pricing for Lip Augmentation
The price of lip augmentation depends on the type of procedure you have. Injectable treatment with JUVÉDERM and Restylane can be very affordable, allowing patients to visit our practice in the San Fernando Valley as needed for touch-ups.
Surgical procedures tend to be more expensive because of the facilities, training, and materials involved. Long-term, however, surgical lip augmentation may save time and money because it’s a permanent solution that makes ongoing injections unnecessary.
If you choose to go with injectable lip augmentation, one other factor that can affect pricing is the amount of product that your nurse uses. Different patients will require different amounts of product to get the results that they want, and maintaining results tends to require less product than when you have your first treatment. We encourage you to visit our practice to learn more about your options.
Lip Augmentation Frequently Asked Questions
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How Long Do the Results from Lip Augmentation by Injection Last?
The longevity of results from a lip augmentation injection procedure will be different for every patient. Many factors can affect how long results last, including the type of injection used, age, metabolism, and more. As an example, people with a rapid metabolism will process lip fillers faster, meaning their lips may start to lose volume more rapidly than someone else who had the procedure at the same time. With that in mind, the average length of time a person will see the best results is about three months to a year.
That being said, lip augmentation results will fade gradually, giving patients the chance to return to Dr. Sanders for a touchup without completely losing their improved appearance all at once.
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What Causes Our Lips to Thin out and Lose Fat as We Age?
Whether a person lives in San Fernando Valley or Pittsburgh, they’ll begin to experience thinner lips the older they get. Why exactly is this? It can mostly be attributed to a loss of collagen in the lips. As a person enters their 30’s and 40’s, the production of collagen in the skin is greatly reduced. Collagen is an important protein building block that gives lips their plump and full shape, so once this store is depleted, it can be quite noticeable.
Of course, age isn’t the only thing that contributes to thinning out lips. Because of the sunny skies in the Los Angeles area, people in this area are also prone to UV damage to their lips, which can also deplete collagen levels and thin out the lips.
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Will My Lips Feel Any Different Than Real Lips When Kissing After an Injection Lip Augmentation?
After a person has an injection lip augmentation, things may feel different for a while. At first, they’ll be a bit swollen and tender, so kissing will be more of a challenge and should be avoided to give the lips time to rest. However, once the filler settles and the lips have time to heal, kissing will feel just like it did before. Patients will have full sensation in their lips, and they don’t have to worry about changing the shape or texture of the fillers with too many smooches.
The same goes for whomever the patient is kissing. The partner shouldn’t notice any difference in the lips, as the augmentation perfectly mimics the contours and softness of a natural mouth.
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Is There Any Downtime When Getting Injection Lip Augmentation?
Injection lip augmentation is a relatively safe procedure with what is usually minimal downtime afterward. Patients can head right back to their normal lives without any issues, though they will need to avoid certain activities. The lips may be a bit swollen and tender for one to two days after the procedure, so it’s a good idea to avoid using a straw, wearing lipstick, or applying any pressure to the area so it can heal. Exercise should also be curtailed for a few days.
The only significant downtime a patient may experience is if they have a negative reaction to the augmentation. For example, if a person experiences significant bruising or tenderness, they may want to take some time to rest and relax instead of heading back to work or running errands.
Explore both surgical and non-surgical solutions for full, well-defined lips. Schedule an appointment with Dr. Sanders online or by phone in Encino, CA at (818) 981-3333.
