Lip Enhancement
Voluptuous lips are regarded as a sign of Dr. Richard Anderson performs lip enhancement procedures on a regular basis and is considered a world authority on this subject, he has published some of the highest numbers of reported lip augmentation cases in the United States.
A variety of materials are available for cosmetic enhancement of the lips. Injectables such as Juvaderm®, Restylane®, and others do provide very pleasing cosmetic lip improvement and are used frequently in our office. Unfortunately, these injectable products do not provide a permanent lip enhancement unless they are repeated about every six months.
More long-lasting and even permanent implants are also available. The most recent new product for lip augmentation is the Perma soft silicone lip implant which can provide permanent but reversible lip enhancement. Dr. Anderson is one of the first plastic surgeons in Arizona to provide this new lip implant. At this time Dr. Anderson, his patients, and other physicians who have implanted the new perma implant, are pleased with the results achieved.
Perma Facial Implant™
The excitement surrounding this cosmetic enhancement breakthrough has been immediate and overwhelming both in the U.S. and in Europe. The implant is made here in the U.S. and consists of soft, solid silicone. It’s and implant that cannot rupture, deflate or degrade over time. The implants correspond to the dimensions of the lip. It is implant and NOT an injection of silicone. The implant is available in a variety of diameters and lengths to accommodate the uniqueness of each person’s lip characterizes, tapering at both ends to conform naturally to the normal lip. Although it’s permanent, the Perma Facial Implant™ is also designed to be easily removable should a person wish to achieve a larger or smaller enhancement or even return to their natural lip appearance.
The lips treated with the Perma lip implant are soft, don't impede lip movement and most importantly are very kissable. Dr. Anderson is optimistic that the improvement will be long-term. Time will tell.
Dr. Anderson also uses other products including AlloDerm for lip augmentation. AlloDerm is an implant material manufactured of human dermis [skin] obtained from tissue banks. In our experience, this implant does remain soft and kissable but has the disadvantage of limited duration in some people. Dr. Anderson also has extensive experience with other materials such as Gore-tex implants, which he occasionally recommends for only the lower lip.
Publications
LIP ENHANCEMENT
By Richard D. Anderson, M.D., F.A.C.S.
Full, soft, youthful, and voluptuous lips are signs of beauty and sexuality in our culture. My personal interest in lip enhancement began over 20 years ago and since then I have had the opportunity to treat thousands of lip patients ranging in age from their early 20's to 80 and above. Patients who desire lip enhancement fall into two groups; those seeking larger and fuller lips to improve what they feel are genetically thin lips and those seeking corrections of aging changes including thinning lips and lines (wrinkles) around the lip and mouth area.
What can be done?
Fortunately, several treatments are currently available which provide impressive improvements when properly done by an experienced professional. Lips are all different in size, shape, underlying support structure (teeth and bones) and, of course, patient desires and expectations are different with each person. The available enhancement techniques are subject to the skill and experience of the plastic surgeon and the results reflect of the ability and experience of the doctor performing them. In this article we will review some of the treatment options that most often provide the desired results in my practice experience. I prefer to decide these options into three classifications.
I. Injectable Fillers
For lip enhancement the ideal (or perfect) injectable material would be safe, relatively permanent, easy to use, have no downtime, and be easily reversed (incase the patient does not like the result). Unfortunately, the perfect material is not yet available, but in the meantime, we do have several injectables which do provide improvement. These range from the patients own fat to a long list of synthetic materials which provide temporary improvement and others touted as relatively permanent. The advantages of injectable fillers are minimal downtime and rapid return to normal activity which is so important in today's fast moving and hectic lifestyle.
In Our Practice I recommend that patients first try a temporary injectable such as Juvaderm® or Restylane®. The temporary feature of these products is an advantage, just incase our patients decide they do not like the result achieved.
Our most popular lip injectables are currently Hyalonic acid preparations (Juvaderm® and Restylane®). These products have been used world wide and do not require skin testing. Their advantage over collagen is a longer lasting result; which is about 6 months for lips. Hyaluronic products are now referred to as "the platinum standard" for lips and for wrinkles. Dozens of other injectable filler products are available, although not all of them are approved or recommended for use in the lips. The large number of available products attest to the fact that the ideal and perfect injectable is not yet available.
II. Implants
Implants are enhancement products which require an incision instead of simply a needle. Although the perfect implant is yet available, one of my current favorites for lips is Alloderm, a product derived from human skin and available to doctors through accredited tissue banks. This material has been used frequently in burn and reconstructive surgeries as well as for cosmetic lip augmentation.
I find Alloderm to provide a natural appearance and natural feel plus a longer lasting result than fat injection in my patients. Our patients appreciate the improved appearance, the soft and natural feeling, and report good "kissability" with this product.
Unfortunately, however, Alloderm implants are not permanent and the material cost is rather high, especially if the improvement achieved disappears sooner than expected.
The most recent new product for lip augmentation is the soft silicone impalnt which can provide permanent but reversible lip enhancement. Dr. Anderson was one of the first plastic surgeons in Arizona to provide this new Perma lip implant. At this time Dr. Anderson, his patients, and other physicians who have implanted the new saline implant, are pleased with the results achieved.
The lips treated are soft, don't impede lip movement and most importantly are very kissable. Dr. Anderson is optimistic that the improvement will be long-term. Time will tell.
II. Other Surgical Procedures
Several surgical procedures are available which are designed to use the patient's own tissue to project and lift the lips, provide more "pout", or shorten a long vertical upper lip.
Vertical Lip Lift
My favorite lip lift procedure achieves a shorter vertical upper lip and more projection or "pout" of the red vermilion part of the lip in an upward and forward direction. This procedure involves excision of a strip of skin below the base of the nose and is often referred to as the bullhorn excision technique. Fortunately, the scars after this procedure are not usually noticeable, but some postoperative swelling will usually persist for several weeks. Examples of the results of this procedure will be shown on photographs.
Another procedure called "lip advancement" involves excisions and stitches on the inside of the lips and results in an enhanced "pout" and projection of the upper and lower lips, if both are done. The major drawback of this particular procedure is a longer recovery with swelling and numbness, which can persist for up to six months. This procedure is called the V-Y lip advancement and those who do the technique report that the final results are usually satisfactory to their patients.
A number of other surgical procedures for lip enhancement and lip enlargement have been described, but are rarely used in my practice.
Summary:
My goal with lip enlargement and lip enhancement techniques is a short downtime and a rapid return to "kissability" (within a few weeks). Remember, however, any technique is only as good as the ability and the experience of the doctor performing it and no surgical technique is applicable to every patient.
Unfortunately, there is not a prefect injectable product, implantable product, or a perfect surgical technique for every patient seeking lip enhancement. Fortunately, however, satisfactory improvements can be achieved for the majority of realistic patients seeking improvement.
The first step for anyone considering lip enhancement is a consultation with an experienced and knowledgeable plastic surgeon, but remember that not all surgeons have experience with lip enhancement treatments. Ask to see photographs of the doctor's work and ask questions about the expected results for your problem. We also advise our patients to bring along lip photographs of the size, the shape, and the look that they desire.
Computer imaging is helpful to assess our patient's desires and expectations. This allows our patient to see the present and the modified images of changes that might be possible. No one can guarantee that the final result will be identical to the computer imaging result, however.
Temporary injectable techniques should be tried first. If the temporary changes are pleasing to our patients, we then may suggest a more aggressive and longer lasting procedure in the future.