Lip Lift
A PERMANENT COSMETIC SOLUTION TO ENHANCE AND REFINE LIPS
A lip lift is a surgical procedure to lessen the space between the bottom of your nose and the top of your lip. A lip lift gives your mouth a more pronounced, youthful appearance without using fillers or implants to increase volume.
This procedure modifies the appearance of the lips, by reshaping them to increase the prominence of the vermilion border to enhance the facial area above the lips into a more aesthetically pleasing shape.
*Individual results may vary.
FAQs about Lip Lift Surgery
WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF LIP LIFTS?
The types of lip lifts include:
- Bullhorn lip lift (subnasal lip lift): This is the most common lip lift surgery. Your plastic surgeon makes a single incision in the shape of a bullhorn below your nose. Then, they bring up the center and sides of your upper lip.
- Central lip lift: Your surgeon makes one incision at the base of your nose to lift the center of your upper lip (Cupid’s bow).
- Corner lip lift: This type elevates the corners of your mouth into a slight smile. This is ideal for people with downturned or drooping lips. Plastic surgeons sometimes combine a corner lip lift with another lip lift procedure.
- Gullwing lip lift (direct lip lift): Your surgeon makes an incision along the border of the upper lip in the shape of a flying seagull. This creates a more defined top lip.
- Italian lip lift: This lift is more subtle than the bullhorn lift and involves two incisions at each nostril. However, it doesn’t lift the center of the lip.
- V to Y lip lift (V-Y advancement): Your surgeon will make an incision in the shape of a letter V and close the incision in the shape of the letter Y.
WHAT IS THE RECOVERY LIKE?
After lip lift surgery, you’ll wait under observation until a healthcare provider clears you to go home. You can go home on the same day as your procedure. You should ask someone to drive you home because the anesthetic can make you tired and dazed.
Your care team will give you specific instructions on how to take care of your incision site and ways to help your skin heal. Their recommendations may include:
- Sleep on your back with your head elevated.
- Avoid talking a lot.
- Take medications as instructed.
- Avoid drinking alcohol or smoking tobacco products while you heal.
- Eat soft foods that don’t require a lot of chewing.
It’s common to experience swelling, soreness and tightness after surgery. Your surgeon will schedule an appointment to remove your stitches a few days after the procedure, or the stitches will dissolve on their own.
HOW LONG DOES A LIP LIFT LAST?
Lip lift results can last for over 10 years. Your lips will continue to age along with the rest of your face, but they’ll always look more youthful than if you hadn’t had the procedure.