Alfred Yarbus, a Russian scientist demonstrated that when people look at a face they tend to look at the eyes and mouth, in a triangular scanning pattern. A study conducted at Harvard tracked the eye movements of medical students who were asked to determine the age of various subjects. This study corroborated Yarbus’ findings in that each medical student looked first at the eyes and then the lips before the age assessment was made. Thus, eyes and lips should definitely be addressed in our quest to look youthful and refreshed.
Lips get thin from gradually losing volume, and vertical lip lines can appear on the top and bottom lip from loss of collagen, sun exposure, smoking, straw-sipping, or even waxing. Repetitive motions like smoking or straw-sipping cause thickening of the orbicularis oris muscle which encircles the mouth. Lip rejuvenation, therefore, can be achieved by either partially relaxing this muscle with Botox or Dysport and/or by filling in the lines with a filler like Juvederm, Restylane or Belotero. Lip volume can also be restored and enhanced with such fillers. Patients can also help themselves by stopping smoking, wearing sunscreen, using topical retinoids, and minimizing straw-sipping.
Dr. Gupta rejuvenates lips based on age, facial structure, and skin condition. The enhancement may be subtle or dramatic, but in either case, the result will suit the patient’s face and it will look natural. With her artistic approach, patients need not worry about “duck lips” or “trout pout” which generally result from overzealous and incorrect injections. Thus, vertical lip lines are filled in gingerly to avoid lumps and bumps or gently smoothed with Botox/Dysport. An indistinct lip line (called the vermilion border) is carefully “threaded” with a filler for better definition. Lip volume is enhanced when indicated, be it to address a disappearing lip or to create a sensuous pout. It is important to note that large, luscious lips may look attractive on younger patients whereas they may look comical on older patients. Age notwithstanding, every patient deserves to have his/her lips “sexified!”
What to Expect:
The area is numbed with a topical anesthetic cream and if the patient desires, lidocaine is administered for anesthesia. The injections are then performed, followed by application of ice for a few minutes. The result is immediate and the patient is able to appreciate the new look, albeit with a little bit of swelling. The swelling does subside within 24-48 hours and patients are advised that the actual result will be about 20-30% less than what they are visualizing in the mirror immediately post injection.
BEFORE/AFTER GALLERY: LIP ENHANCEMENT
