Thin Lips? This Can Change!

Tuesday, 30 June 2020 07:06

Keystone Cosmetic Surgery Center

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The lips are a central physical feature on the face and one that has always been indicative of youthful beauty. This is advantageous for those who are born with full, well-defined lips, at least for a time. But what do you do if you weren’t born with lips that command attention? What happens when aging affects the shape of the lips? All hope is not lost. Today, we have several ways to change our lips if we so choose. Here, we discuss what those are.

Why Lips Thin Over Time

We attribute thinning lips to the aging process. However, it’s more complex than that. Research shows that thinning lips may be caused by a combination of factors, such as:

• Declining collagen. Collagen is the protein that acts as a scaffold for the skin. Collagen gives the skin its firmness and structure. After age 20, the body doesn’t produce new collagen as quickly as it did in youth. This results in the deflation of the skin, including the lips.
• Sun exposure. The sun works against us in many ways. With too much sun exposure, collagen breaks down (and isn’t getting replaced very quickly, if at all!) faster than it would otherwise.
• Vitamin deficiency. Studies suggest that, if we lack vitamin B, we may experience problems like cracked or thinning lips.

Reviving the Lips

Whether your lips have thinned over time or Mother Nature did not bestow voluptuous lips to you at birth, you have options to enhance your appearance. Lip augmentation may include one of several techniques. Some people have gone so far as to have silicone implants inserted to achieve a more dramatic transformation. This technique may not be right for everyone and does carry risks so it should only be conducted by a board-certified plastic surgeon with specific experience performing lip implant surgery. More conservative but still effective techniques include fat transfer and dermal fillers.

Fat Transfer Lip Enhancement

Fat transfer, often simply called fat injections, is a technique that has two steps. The first is to harvest fat cells from a part of the body using a minor liposuction procedure. After obtaining fatty tissue, the doctor processes it to separate fluid from pure fat cells. This purified material is then injected beneath the skin of the lips to permanently enhance volume and shape. Over time, fat cells may deflate somewhat, just as they naturally do on all parts of the face. However, fat transfer is considered a long-term procedure.

Dermal Fillers

Dermal filler injections account for the majority of lip enhancement treatments. This technique works similarly to fat injections in that the goal is to increase volume and define the shape of the lips. Dermal fillers achieve this with tiny particles of hyaluronic acid, a chemical that binds to water molecules. The results of dermal filler treatment can last several months, treatment is convenient and has few side effects, and there is little risk of adverse reaction when injections are performed by a trained, experienced professional.

Are you ready for your lips to stand out in the most beautiful way? Contact our Hazelton or Pottsville office to schedule your consultation.