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If you want a more youthful and sexy looking mouth, keep in mind that big lips are not the only way to go.
I have been doing more and more lip lifts. An alternative to lip augmentation, the lip lift is a procedure which reduces the space between the bottom of your nose and the top of your lips. Some people are born with a longer space, while other people start to notice it more with the aging process. The ideal distance is 1.1 cm.
Often times a patient will come to me thinking she needs a lip augmentation. However, a closer examination of her lips reveal that her teeth are not showing when her mouth is at rest and the distance between her nose base and the top of her lips is greater than 1.5 cm. If I augment the lips with a filler, I run the risk of the lips just moving outward, and not lifting upward. When there is no space for the lips to go but outward, this creates a ‘duck lip’ look. Since the goal is NOT ‘duck lips,’ the alternative is to raise the upper lip so that her teeth become visible. This refreshes the mouth area and results in a more youthful appearance.
Once the upper teeth are showing, there is usually no need to increase the actual size of the lips, as more of the red portion of her upper lip is now prominent. The lip lift simply corrects the anatomical distance of the upper lip so that her mouth is more shaped and youthful. Remember, it’s not just about big lips.
Lately, my patients have been quite educated about the various techniques that surgeons use. Recently a patient asked me if my technique would cut muscle or nerves. This is a good question and I would like readers to know that my technique does NOT cut muscle or nerves!
In summary, this is a description of the lip lift technique that I have been using for many years:
- An incision is made at the base of the nose in the natural ridge between lip skin and nasal skin
- Skin is elevated only to the level where preoperative markings were made, leaving the muscle intact.
- We spread muscle fibers at 5 points to reach the membrane covering the septum and nasal bones. Three tunnels are made centrally: one through the septum and the other two on either side of i, corresponding to the middle and ridges of the philrum in the upper lip. One tunnel at the outer border of the nostrils.
- The sutures are tied to the underside of the lip skin. The sutures do not tie muscle, and do not tie nerves. There is no cutting of any structure once we cut skin.
Before and After Lip Lift Photos
With the lip lift techniques I use, described above, the results are just great! Remember, the lip lift simply corrects the anatomical distance between the bottom of your nose and the top of your lips, as shown in the following photos:
| lip lift patient one |
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| lip lift patient two |
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| lip lift patient three |
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| lip lift patient four |
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| lip lift patient five |
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| lip lift patient six |
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Lip Lift Video
Watch my lip lift video to learn more about the difference between a lip lift and a lip augmentation.
Fly in for a Lip Lift
Many of our lip lift patients live outside the Baltimore area. The procedure is performed under local anesthesia and the required stay is one night in Baltimore. Contact our office for more details.
Ricardo L Rodriguez, M.D.
Board Certified Plastic Surgeon
© Cosmeticsurg.net
33 Comments
April 16, 2012 at 1:30 pm
Stefano:
Be sure to contact Kelly at kelly@cosmeticsurg.net in advance before you come so we can be ready for you.
Chers!
April 11, 2012 at 1:15 am
you’re right as the jaw was really set back..definetely too much..anyway i would prefer not to have any filler in the lip below also because the maxilla situation of the mandible should be reconsidered by another surgeon in the future..maybe the problem is emphasized by the “great fall” of the upper lip that presses onto the lower as you say in your video “the upper lip goes passed the teeth and is really overriding on the lower..” and already pushes forward in the way of the duck lip you mention but without the effect of duck lip as there was no augmentation..i think i’ll defineteley fly in for a lip lift before summer, i’ve got got to check when it’s the cheapest flight…hoping to get an improvement as “dramatic” as the the first lady in the photos…the distance and the fall of the lip looks not too far from that example…hear you soon
April 9, 2012 at 3:11 pm
Stefano:
If you had maxilla facial surgery, it is entirely possible your lips rolled in, especially if your jaw was set back.
As for the upper lip I think a lip lift will help. For the lower lip, I would need to see before and after pictures to better understand the problem. The lips look fleshy before probably because the jaw bones (maxilla and mandible) were pushing the lips out, not necessarily because they were thicker than the average.
You may benefit from a lip lift un the upper lip and filler bellow.
Stefano, I envy you living in Rome. All the great eras of man in one place, and great food to sit and contemplate.
April 2, 2012 at 3:33 am
dear dr rodriguez, i’m stefano from rome! due to a maxillo facial surgery more than 1 year ago i don’t like my mouth anymore.. i had quite fleshy and visible lips now the vermillion of both upper and lower lips has rolled in making them look thinner and more “flattened”..as for the upper lip i look the ideal candidate for the lip lift since the distance is now 2 cm about 5mm more than before that surgery and obviously i don’t show any front teeth (i can see your non common ability in this procedure from the great results and sometimes “dramatic” changes and improvements you get from it)…what about the lower lip?is there any similar procedure for the lower lip to make the vermillion roll out and look it fuller and slightly “increased” just like the lip lift for the upper without any augmentation?i don’t like the idea of any fillers..(my original lips are fleshy the problem is that they rolled inside)..bye..many compliments for your lip lifts also for the one you performed on the man of the photo
March 29, 2012 at 8:07 am
Danyelle:
I don’t understand what you mean.
If you want to show me, either send some drawings of what you mean, or pictures.
Contact Kelly at kelly@cosmeticsurg.net for more info
March 29, 2012 at 8:06 am
DJ:
Plastic Surgery “turns back the clock of aging”, but aging continues.
Most people will not need a lip lift redo, but this is all a matter of individual preference. I have several patients that are approaching the 10 year mark, so far none have come back for a redo, but I have had several who come in before 10 years who come back because they want to go higher. It is somewhat like people who want larger breast implants.
March 27, 2012 at 11:30 pm
What would it be called if I sucked my lip out and it involves the inside skin of the lip?
March 27, 2012 at 8:15 pm
Do the results fade over time? ie: Would another lift lip in 10 years be necessary?
January 26, 2012 at 5:53 pm
Linda:
The word is not entered in the text of the post, thus it was not misspelled. I can only assume that you mean the picture shows an arrow over the philtrum. Thank you for giving my readers the opportunity to learn the technical term for that particular segment of the upper lip.
Oh, and smile!
January 26, 2012 at 4:21 pm
Philtrum, you idiot
January 19, 2012 at 6:58 pm
Brittany:
Symmetry is impossible to get with surgery. Sometimes the asymmetry is due to the way the person moves their facial expression muscles. This is also seen with eyebrows.
One always attempts to leave the same amount of lip skin on each side, indeed, the measurements are not of what is being taken out, but what is left behind. For example, I do not measure that I am taking out 4 millimeters of lip tissue, I measure that I will leave behind exactly 1.1 millimeters on each side of the upper lip.
Despite my attempts at perfection, always one side ends up being slightly different.
In your particular case, the fact that one side lifts slightly more when you smile is a good indication that it is due to muscle action more than skin excess. The surgery will probably not affect this asymmetry, but I doubt it will make it worse.
January 19, 2012 at 3:56 am
Hi Dr. Rodriguez, my lips are slightly asymmetrical. Are lip lifts ever performed to attempt to correct this? And if so, has it been successful? One side of my lip lifts slightly more than the other side when I smile. I’m afraid that a lip lift will make the asymmetry more noticeable and/or not correct it at all.
November 16, 2011 at 9:47 am
Rosita:
Yes, you can have is a lip lift! About the lumps, I would have to see what we are dealing with before I give an opinion.
Call Kelly at kelly@cosmeticsurg.net, she’ll give you all the info you need and she herself had the procedure done.
Looking forward to seeing you!
And don’t forget to spread the word about the blog!
November 14, 2011 at 7:23 pm
i have long distance between nose and lip. Went to a surgeon years ago to correct this. He injected fat that he had taken from my belly into my lips. I now have lumpy duck lips. I understand now looking at your video that the procedure i was suppose to have was the lip lift. When i leave my mouth rested i see no teeth. Is there any chance that my lips can still have a lip lift. Can the lumps be smoothed out upon having this procedure done. What is the procedure cost and is there a consultation fee. I live in New York. I have a friend out in Baltimore that i could stay with!
October 1, 2011 at 3:00 pm
Dr. Cogburn:
I do perform lip lifts on men. Obviously, it’s not as frequent as females, because my practice is mostly female. I tend to more for a conservative approach on men (1.3 to 1.5 cm lip length) and that seems to work fine.
Unfortunately men don’t tend to come back for post op pictures, but several have volunteered to talk to patients who are interested.
I have only turned down one male, and it was because his problem was there was no pull on the zygomaticus muscles (zygomaticus major or minor) and smile dynamics would not have altered at all, which is what he wanted.
BTW, I just went over to your site and was impressed by your Sculptra Results. I tend to go for fat when I want that much volume, but you really get great mileage out of Sculptra.
If you contact Kelly, she can put you in contact with men I have done, sharing may depend on consents, etc., but I’m sure Kelly will be more than happy to help.
September 17, 2011 at 2:09 pm
I am very impressed by your photos as well as your
candor.
How often do you perform lip lifts on men and do you have
Any photos to shRe
May 3, 2011 at 11:58 am
Mara:
Scar resolution is a highly individual event. As a general rule, younger people sometimes take longer for the scar to resolve, but there is variation in that too.
The days after surgery (5-7 days) we recommend patients not to talk too much and to eat soft foods where there is not a lot of vigorous chewing.
My patient coordinator, Kelly had the procedure done. You may want to ask her a few questions she can answer from a patient point of view. Kelly can be reached at kelly@cosmeticsurg.net.
We’ll be looking forward to hearing from you!
April 30, 2011 at 1:30 am
Hello Dr. Rodriguez,
I had been researching different procedures for months and finally I came across your website and in your video your explanation was exactly what I had been looking for, so my questions are:
*How long would you say it takes for the scar to be as close to gone as humanly possible?
*Also, would you need to be extremely careful in the following days/weeks to not rip the scar open?
*Last question, I noticed you said that women as soon as their twenties may benefit from this procedure, would someone as young as 18, providing that they have the same situation, be a good candidate as well?
Thank you so much for taking the time to provide such personal feedback! Also, your website is very informative and comforting:)
March 24, 2011 at 10:13 pm
Sam:
I need to see your case to determine what can be done.
In theory, yes, we can revise the scar and anchor the skin to the deeper tissues, which is what prevents tension in the scar (this may be why you have a thick scar). This would also make the result more long lasting. You might be interested in this short video with criteria and results.
As for the philtrum, when you bias your repair towards the center, that is, you suture the skin of the lip to a point closer to the center underneath the nose, you recreate a more defined philtrum.
I will let Kelly know of your interest, she will be contacting you soon. We’d love to help you.
March 24, 2011 at 10:05 pm
Valerie:
Steer away from those muscle hemming techniques, I hear a lot of horror stories on the internet. I do skin only. All my post op pictures are at least 4 months after surgery. You can see a short video here with long term results.
Kelly, my office assistant had hers done years ago, ask her about it ( kelly@cosmeticsurg.net).
The lip lift does not increase the fullness of the lip but it does make more of the red part of the lip show, so the lip appears “fuller”.
You sound like a great candidate for the lip lift, and if you are interested we can set up a skype conference and I can explain how it works.
We’d love to hear from you!
March 23, 2011 at 5:00 pm
Hi,
I have had a lip lift before but the scars are bad and I am not happy with the amount that was taken out. I would love to have it revised, would it be possible to cut out the scar and more skin to get a better result this time. I would also love to hear whether you can create a much more defined philtrum without giving the area a bulky look, as this is what I was left with from the previous lip lift. I am also hoping to have a rhino in the future. Would your method of creating tunnels through the septum allow this? Great site and pics
March 23, 2011 at 3:42 pm
Hi Dr. Rodriguez, I have a couple of questions – I have a small upper lip and no tooth show. Fillers definitely help, but as you’ve pointed out, they can only do so much before you look like a duck. I’m really more interested in exposing/rolling out more of the vermillion of my upper lip and if I can get a couple of mm of tooth show, I’d be happy. I am interested in the “skin-only” lip lift as opposed to the muscle-hemming lip lift because hemming the muscle appears to be really complicated and risky. 1st question: I’ve seen a couple of doctors in LA/Beverly Hills who really encourage the muscle-hemming lip lift because they have both said the skin-only lip lift isn’t permanent. Could you please tell me if this is the case? 2nd question: The 2 doctors in Beverly Hills have both said that the upper lip lift really doesn’t increase the fullness of the upper lip (which makes sense in the “muscle hemming technique”, since you’re not really rolling anything out, you’re just lifting everything up), yet both of them were unable to actually show me what it would look like. I know this may sound crazy but I actually will press in on the skin just below the base of my nose, which causes the upper lip to roll slightly out and up and I absolutely love it! I’m wondering if this is what I could expect with a skin-only lip lift?
March 20, 2011 at 1:46 pm
Coutney:
I can’t Google it unless I get some more specific details.
There is a procedure where one inserts a small suture to shorten the lip. There are 2 reasons I don’t like it: 1) It only lifts the central part of the lip 2) I’ve tried it and patients complain that it tends to limit the motion of their lips in the lateral directions.
If you are interested, contact Kelly at kelly@cosmeticsurg.net, she’d be happy to hear from you!
March 20, 2011 at 3:13 am
hi, i have been trying to research this new technique by a Houston doctor you can google it and see what i am talking about. It is really interesting and it does not leave any scars. it supposedly only takes 15 min and is an in office procedure. i was wondering if it was possible, could u do this surgery on someone?
December 12, 2010 at 9:30 pm
Dear Mary:
Without knowing how your procedure was done, there is very little I can say. To make any kind of recommendation I would need a copy of the operative report and see your pictures or even do a Skype session just to see how your mouth moves.
You will need a thorough evaluation to see what can or cannot be done. I think in most cases, something can be done, but do not expect perfection.
If you are interested, email Kelly at kelly@cosmeticsurg.net
December 12, 2010 at 4:12 pm
Hi Dr Rodriquez,
I had a muscle lip lift where the doctor hemmed or folded my OO muscle and then he completely sutured it to the periosteum behind the nose. Now I have an upper lip that has flattened and the area between both philtrums just hangs without any ability to normally move. The movements of my upper lip are abnormal and I have difficulty eating and with speech. I used to have a really nice upper lip with a nice curl to the white roll, just a bit long. Now the lip hangs way below my top teeth. It’s much longer then before the surgery, I believe due to muscle inactivity. Do you think it is possible to get the function back in my upper lip if it was released and is it possible to get a liplift revision.
December 4, 2010 at 3:17 pm
Jessica:
The cupids’s bow can be changed very effectively by the lip lift. Doing a combination of lip lift with fillers you can get very dramatic results.
I love this procedure because it does give such great results.
December 4, 2010 at 3:14 pm
Jessica:
I have tried this method a couple of times. The problem comes when you try to move the lips side to side, the loop holds the central part of the lip at a fixed distance. It looks a little bit funny and patients complain it bothers them. Both patients I did ended up being converted to a traditional lip lift. If the procedure was as good as it looks everybody would be doing it.
I’m always on the lookout for better ways to do things, but I tried this and it didn’t work out as well as I thought it would.
November 27, 2010 at 3:11 am
Also, what do you do is a patient has a very subtle almost invisible cupids cow/philtrum?
November 27, 2010 at 3:09 am
Are you familiar with this method? Do your think it is as good as the original? Are there any flaws?
http://cnettv.cnet.com/new-lip-lift-method/9742-1_53-50036712.html
November 5, 2010 at 9:24 am
Very Good Article, nice to see a professional posting an in-depth post on what seems to coming be a very common procedure.
Cosmetic Surgery Manchester
October 10, 2010 at 9:23 pm
It really depends on the case
October 2, 2010 at 5:15 pm
Very educational post. How common is it for your patients to combine the lip augmentation and lift?