Your lips are one of the first features others will notice. Plump, full lips can balance the facial features, giving your face a youthful appearance. Unfortunately, not everyone is satisfied with the look of their mouth and aesthetic lips. Genetics, illness, smoking, and the normal aging process can ultimately affect the size and shape of the lips. As the lips begin to thin, this subtle change can have a direct impact on one’s self-esteem.
For decades, the Boston Center for Facial Rejuvenation has been providing cutting-edge treatment options that restore the lip’s shape, size, and volume. Patients trust Dr. Leonard Miller, Dr. Sean Doherty and Dr. Catherine DiGiorgio, to create beautiful, proportionate lips that look soft and natural, never ‘puffed-out’ or ‘duck-like’. With exemplary skill, extensive experience, and an innate understanding of the facial features, Dr. Miller, Dr. DiGiorgio and Dr. Doherty can plump flat, thin lips, create more defined lip borders for ideal facial rejuvenation and minimize bruising and swelling at the same time at the Boston Center.
Benefits of Noninvasive Lip Augmentation:
- Natural-Looking Lip Fullness – Modern dermal fillers can provide immediate shape by adding volume to the lips. Injectables made with Hyaluronic Acid (HA) will continue to pull in moisture from surrounding tissues, creating soft, natural-looking results.
- Gradual Improvements – While the benefit of most dermal fillers can be seen immediately, Dr. Miller, Dr. DiGiorgio and Dr. Doherty can offer subtle changes with multiple sessions over several appointments, thus ensuring no drastic alterations to the appearance.
- Improvement in the Overall Appearance – Fuller, shapely lips will play off the other features, creating a more youthful appearance. Lip augmentation not only makes a patient look years younger, but they often feel more confident, as well.
- Quick Recovery – Injectable fillers are applied during a quick office appointment, generally taking less than 30 minutes. While mild swelling, is common this will quickly diminish over 2 days.
- Little Chance for Serious Side-Effects – Redness, mild bruising, tenderness, and light swelling are common after a noninvasive lip augmentation session.
Lip Enhancement at The Boston Center For Facial Rejuvenation
Today’s patients have numerous options when it comes to nonsurgical lip augmentation. Dr. Miller, Dr. DiGiorgio and Dr. Dohertyoffer a variety of soft tissue fillers, each approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to safely provide the desired results. In addition to dermal fillers, the surgeons also offer the fat transfer technique, using the body’s own fatty tissue to plump the lips.
There are many fillers available to achieve plump lips, smooth fine lip lines, and define the lip borders. Dr. Miller, Dr. DiGiorgio and Dr. Doherty will work with each patient to create a personalized plan, finding the best noninvasive lip augmentation option.
Juvederm Volbella
Juvederm Volbella is a soft HA filler. The pliable texture of Volbella makes it a perfect choice for adding volume to the lips, restoring shape and contour without the risk of an over-filled look. Volbella can successfully smooth delicate lip lines and create a youthful definition for the lip border. The benefits of one Volbella session will last from four to six months.
Juvederm Ultra and Juvederm Ultra Plus
Juvederm Ultra and Juvederm Ultra Plus are FDA-approved soft tissue fillers, great for immediately adding shape to thin or asymmetrical lips. These fillers can create dramatic, plump, pillow-like lips that remain soft to the touch. The results from Juvederm Ultra and Juvederm Ultra Plus will last for six to nine months, sometimes longer.
Restylane
A gold standard in lip augmentation, Restylane is a trusted HA filler offering exceptional results. Over time, as Restylane’s HA continues to pull in moisture and encourage the body’s collagen production, the results from one lip augmentation session can look wonderful for up to six months. Restylane Silk is a softer form of Restylane and is effective in filling in fine lines above and below the lips. Restylane Refyne is another softer filler for the lips and is a member of the Restylane family.
The Ideal Lip Augmentation Candidate
Both men and women can make excellent candidates for lip enhancement. During the one-on-one consultation at the Boston Center for Facial Rejuvenation, Dr. Miller, Dr. DiGiorgio and Dr. Doherty will perform an examination of the lips and facial tissues. After discussing at-length all of the possible lip augmentation techniques, the best treatment will be determined. An ideal patient will understand the recommended treatment plan and will hold reasonable expectations for their results.
While noninvasive lip augmentation can provide significant results for most patients, no matter their skin type or ethnicity, the technique will not be for everyone. Those who are pregnant or nursing, struggling with certain health issues, or an active skin or viral infection may be encouraged to postpone their lip augmentation until a later date.
The Lip Augmentation Procedure
The Boston Center for Facial Rejuvenation offers the full range of noninvasive lip augmentation techniques. There are a number of dermal fillers created especially for smoothing fine lip lines and plumping thinning lips. These fillers can dramatically provide symmetry and volume to the lips, as well as create a more defined lip border and Vermilion Border (the “M” along the top lip). Hyaluronic Acid (HA) fillers take less than half an hour to administer. Through several small injections, Dr. Miller, Dr. DiGiorgio and Dr. Doherty can meticulously create the desired volume and shape, without over-filling the lips. For optimal patient comfort, a topical numbing cream or local anesthetic can be applied prior to the filler injections.
A lip fat transfer can provide long-term shape and volume for the lips. Using a fine cannula (tube), Dr. Miller, Dr. DiGiorgio or Dr. Doherty will use liposuction to remove a small amount of fatty tissue from elsewhere on the body. Donor areas often include the abdomen and thighs. This tissue is then purified and separated using different techniques. The isolated fat cells are then re-injected into the lips, creating a soft fullness that can last for many years to come. Most lip fat transfer techniques will take less than an hour in the office.
Lip Enhancement Recovery
There is little to no recovery time after a noninvasive lip augmentation procedure. Many of our Boston patients even have the treatment performed during their lunch hour. However, it is common for the lips to be slightly swollen, slightly bruised, and tender for the first 24-48 hours. For this reason, some patients may choose to spend the first afternoon recovering before returning to work. Intermittent ice packs on the lips throughout the first day can help to keep swelling to a minimum. While patients can return to work or school immediately, exercise should be postponed for 48 hours, reducing the chance for swelling. Makeup can also be applied immediately.
Lip Augmentation Results
The results from noninvasive lip augmentation can be seen right away and will last for six to nine months, sometimes longer, depending on the specific injectable and the individual patient. Once the benefits start to fade, a maintenance session can then further extend the results. During the consultation appointment, Dr. Miller, Dr. DiGiorgio and Dr. Doherty will review the expected results in detail.
The lip augmentation techniques used by the Boston Center for Facial Rejuvenation are considered both safe and effective, however mild side-effects are common. These can include redness, tenderness, swelling, and bruising. Although serious complications are rare, asymmetry, nerve damage, and infection can occur. For this reason, it is important that patients only choose a board certified, experienced cosmetic surgeon to administer any injectable treatment.
Cost of Lip Augmentation in Boston
To get more about the noninvasive lip augmentation options from the Boston Center for Facial Rejuvenation, call our office at 617.735.8735. During your confidential consultation, the exact cost of your upcoming lip enhancement procedure will be determined. As lip augmentation is considered an elective cosmetic procedure, most insurance policies will not cover the procedure. To make paying for your lip enhancement easier, the Boston Center for Facial Rejuvenation accepts medical financing from CareCredit.
2 years ago I went to Dr. Miller and had Juvaderm and Botox done and I was extremely satisfied. Yesterday I went to his office thinking we were going to do the same and Dr. Miller actually did more injections with Restylane! I could not be happier. He injected under my eyes, cheek area, around my mouth and my lips! He numbed the areas first but it still was a bit uncomfortable.
Lip Augmentation FAQ
Noninvasive lip augmentation is a cosmetic treatment designed to plump thinning lips, smooth lip lines, and add definition to vanishing lip borders. Using a variety of soft tissue fillers, the Boston Center for Facial Rejuvenation’s Dr. Miller, Dr. DiGiorgio and Dr. Doherty can create subtle, natural-looking improvements in lip shape, fullness, and symmetry. The fat transfer method can also offer long-lasting lip fullness using fatty tissue from a donor area of the body.
Almost anyone unhappy with the shape or fullness of their lips may make a good candidate for a noninvasive lip augmentation technique. Potential patients should be in overall good health, understand the recommend lip augmentation treatment plan, and hold realistic expectations for the results. Those patients who are pregnant, nursing, or experiencing certain illnesses may be asked to postpone their lip augmentation session.
Benefits from a lip augmentation session are often immediate. Dermal fillers will plump and sculpt the lips right away. Hyaluronic Acid fillers offer long-lasting results by kick-starting the body’s collagen production, extending the benefits of treatment for six to nine months, sometimes longer.
Lip augmentation requires little to no downtime, meaning patients can return to work right away. However, bruising and mild swelling are common, therefore many patients may want to wait for a day or two before heading to work or school. Exercise should be avoided for the first 48 hours, as well. Makeup can be applied right away.
The lip enhancement techniques offered at the Boston Center for Facial Rejuvenation is are considered safe. Side-effects are generally mild, but can include redness, swelling, pin point bleeding, and bruising. More serious complications are extremely rare, however infection, nerve damage, and asymmetry can occur.
