Last week we talked about eyes, the window to the soul. Today we are going to discuss another part of the anatomy that can instantly tell your age.
Youthful lips are generally very full and inviting. They are made of the white line where the skin and the pink mucosa of the lip join and the fullness of the lip takes off. The cupids bow is in the center of the upper lip giving definition and contrast that the lower lip is missing. Usually the lower lip is slightly larger than the upper. Youthful lips are smooth and surrounded by skin that is also smooth with uniform color and texture.
So what happened?? A number of things. Skin aging, sun damage, volume loss, i.e. fat, around and in the lip, smoking, using straws, smiling, frowning, kissing and just time. All of these things age our entire face but since the mouth is one of the centers of motion and expression in the face, like the eyes, it shows the use as we age. The lips become thin and surrounded by vertical lines, nasolabial folds, marrionette lines. The "white line" becomes less visible and the "cupids bow" becomes a straight line.
How can we repair the damage?? We can lift the tissue around the lips, correcting the cheeks and neck. We can correct the nasolabial folds by adding volume in the form of a filler (Juvederm, Radiesse, fat grafting). We can do dental correction to improve the underlying structure if needed. To correct the skin damage, it is important to improve the skin. We can do this in a few steps. First, good skin care is critical. As stated here before, we recommend Obagi products that combine Tretinoin and hydroquinone to correct color changes and improve the texture of the skin. We then can augment the lips using temporary fillers like Juvederm or more permanent fillers like Silikon 1000. This replaces the volume that has been lost. Lastly, after pre-treating the skin with Obagi and repairing sun damage, the deeper wrinkles and vertical lines remain. What to do about them? They can be filled if extremely deep, again, with a temporary filler. The best way to treat the area is with laser. Resurfacing the area promotes new collagen production, softens the wrinkled areas, and removes the sallow color of the skin. I usually recommend doing the entire face along with the area around the mouth. This removes transition zones and looks more uniform. We use the Pearl laser which is great for this. It has a faster recovery time than similar lasers, can be spread over multiple treatments, and gives great results. The price for the first treatment is only $1000 and repeat treatments are $500. Most require 2 or 3 treatments for a great outcome. The order should be, skin care, laser, then filler as some laser treatments can degrade the filler material.
Come see us for lip rejuvenation. We carry a complete line of Obaji products and fillers. Also Botox that can help prevent some of these changes.
Don't forget our other specials too....summer is approaching rapidly!! Breast augmentation starting at $3799.00!