Valentine’s Day is synonymous with big lips. But beyond this festive day, however, bigger lips are sought every other day of the year as well. Lip enhancement by injectable fillers is second only to Botox injections as a popular office procedure that numbers in the millions done around the world per year.
Why do women want fuller lips? Lips are recognized to be an erogenous zone for women in both appearance and function. A woman’s lips are historically thought of as a visible expression of her fertility. Studies have shown that a woman’s facial and sexual attractiveness is closely linked to her hormonal makeup during puberty and development. A woman’s estrogen levels helps maintain a youthful facial appearance in which the lips are fuller. Full lips are therefore attractive to men because they serve as marker of a woman’s health and fertility. At the very least, they clearly seem to make women feel more attractive and appealing. At their best, bigger lips ‘fool’ men into thinking that a woman is more fertile and attractive.
When it comes to the use of injectable fillers for lip enhancement, here are five insights when considering this treatment.
1) All injectable fillers are not the same. This is particularly true when injecting into the lips. Any filler that contains particles should not be used in the lips. While particulated fillers do last longer, they are also prone to lumps, bumps and the rare potential for granulomas. (foreign body reactions) This means that the best and safest fillers to use in the lips are hyaluron-based. (e.g., Restylane, Juvaderm)
2) Duration and cost are the most important injectable filler features. Forget about the fancy names and the market ads, they all are FDA-approved and they work. (they are injectable and they do fill) Beyond the lowest risk of complications as previously mentioned, the only thing that matters is how long they last and how much do they cost. Those are the value propositions with injectable fillers.
3) Lip injections do hurt. The lips have the highest concentration of nerve endings in the external face. Most women are afraid that lip injections will hurt and they are right. There is just no way around that fact. Even though today’s injectable fillers do have lidocaine (numbing solution) in them, you still have to get the needle into the lip to inject it first before that will even work. Many practitioners have their method of making lip injections less painful, I still find that a little dental injection under the upper lip makes the whole process much more tolerable.
4) The amount of injectable filler placed is individually determined. The greatest fear of most women having their lips enhanced is that they will be too big. Most women do not want ‘fish lips’, some just want a little volume increase. My approach has always been the Look and Layer method. The lip(s) are partially injected and the mirror is then pulled out and we look. This incremental method allows the patient to decide when the lip is big enough. There is no risk of ending up too big with this approach.
5) Lip injection touch-ups are not rare. Making the lips exactly even and symmetric is not always easy. While it may look perfectly even at the time of the injection, some slight asymmetries may become apparent as they settle out over a few days. Doing a little touch-up injection is occasionally needed.
Dr. Barry Eppley
Indianapolis, Indiana