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Mouth Lifts – Turn Up That Smile Line!

While lip concerns can range from lips that are too thin to those with too many wrinkles, the ‘frowning smile’ is a different issue. In this lip problem, it is the corners of the mouth that are downturned, creating a sad or unhappy expression when one is not smiling. Some patients have this naturally, others develop it from aging to the weight of the falling cheek tissues onto the corner of the mouth. Eiher way, it is not an infrequent concern that I hear expressed from many patients.

The good news is….there are two simple methods for improvement of this problem…and both can be done in the office. The easiest treatment is to simply place any of the injectable fillers into the mouth corners, (e.g., Restylane, Juvaderm, or Radiesse) , making less deep the natural crease that exists there as well as creating a subtle lifting effect. While easy and instantaneous, the result is not permanent and will last only as long as the filler persists. (months) I prefer in some cases a corner of the mouth lift, it can be more effective than fillers and is more permanent. In this office procedure under local anesthesia, a very small triangle of skin is removed from just above the corner of the mouth and the corner lifted into a new position. While it does create a very small scar, I have not found it to be a problem in any of my patients. The key is a subtle lift and not to overdo it. The creation of a permanent smile or the ‘Joker’ look is not natural. I have found this procedure, combined with the use of injectable fillers in other areas of the lip, provides a nice more youthful look to the mouth area.

Dr Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana

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