Question: I am thinking of getting one syringe of Juvederm in my lips but I am worried that my lips will end up beng HUGE. I do not want them to be that noticeable, just a little fuller. My lips are small as is, with my top lip being thinner and more defined than my bottom lip Can you please look at the photo and see how much of a different would Juvederm be? Thank you!

Dr A’s Answer: Augmenting lips can be a fun thing. With the hyaluronic acids (Juvederm and Restylane family of products) you have the opportunity to try different things since the results are temporary. Worse case is that you have it dissolved. Since no one wants to got through the process and waste money dissolving the product, developing a plan beforehand is important. For example, you can create a more “pillowy” appearance, you can get a more “pouty” look, you can change the balance of upper to lower lip, you can change the balance of central lip to outside lip, or . . . the list goes on. Different amounts of product would be appropriate depending on what your goals are and where you start. Generally speaking, 1cc of product produces a noted change. Sometimes even much less depending on the type of treatment and lip. Which product you use is way over emphasized by some physicians. The result is primarily driven by how it is injected, not by which of the reputed products used. The difference between the various products is more likely to manifest itself in duration, not appearance. It might be worth limiting yourself to Restylane or Juvederm Volbella since those two are officially FDA approved for use in the lips. A highly relevant topic is pain control. The lips are VERY sensitive with more nerve endings per square millimeter than just about anywhere else on the human body. A nerve block is critical in my opinion since, when done by a skilled injector, produces complete numbness without itself altering the shape of the lip. When the patient is in no pain.it is no effort at all to sit still, resulting in both comfort and a much more accurate injection. Other methods simply don’t compare. A well done nerve block works in seconds and lasts about 20 minutes.

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