1. My lips have all of these vertical wrinkles around the edges, which smears my lipstick - will lip augmentation correct this?
2. How much recovery should I allow for?
3. Is the procedure painful?
4. Are the implants safe?
5. How long will my augmentation last?
6. Can I have additional augmentation done after the original procedure if I want?
   
   

My lips have all of these vertical wrinkles around the edges, which smears my lipstick - will lip augmentation correct this?
Lip augmentation will help stretch and smooth the skin of the lips, so improvement with lip wrinkles can be expected. Lipstick should go on smoother and look better. Wrinkles won’t be completely eliminated by filling out the lip volume, however. Resurfacing procedures, such as laser resurfacing, may be desirable for some patients.

How much recovery should I allow for?
Depends. With collagen injections you can expect to be presentable within hours. With solid implants the lips become more swollen and even bruised. This swelling and bruising can take several days to subside. For solid implants dissolvable stitches are used inside the corners in the mouth, which typically last about a week. If you must be discreet about your procedure you should take the rest of the day off after injectable enhancement and a week off after solid implantation.

Is the procedure painful?
No. Solid implants or fat injections are placed using local anesthetic, which is easily tolerated. Injectable collagen has local anesthetic mixed in with the implant and the procedure is no more painful than any small injection.

Are the implants safe?
The results are permanent. Once the excess skin has been removed it will not grow back, so you will have a permanent benefit from the surgery. If you had a twin and you had the surgery and your twin did not, you would always look seven to ten years better than your twin. However, you would both continue to age and have age-related changes occur to your face and neck. For this reason, some patients will choose to have a “tuck up” procedure after seven to ten years to update their initial result.

How long will my augmentation last?
This is variable. In general, injectable collagen lasts about three months for most individuals. Alloderm solid implants last beyond a year and could last for several years in some individuals. A certain degree of permanent enhancement may remain if the body replaces any of the Alloderm with scar tissue. GoreTex and other synthetic implants last indefinitely. Fat injections last about three months, but may eventually have a permanent “build up” effect after several treatments.

Can I have additional augmentation done after the original procedure if I want?
Yes.


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