Anatomy and ideal proportion:
The height of the upper lip should correspond to a ratio 1/1.6 (golden ratio) of the height of the lower lip. The cupid’s bow and the hemline (junction between the skin and the lip) can be redefined with the injections. On the profile, the upper lip should extend 3-4 mm beyond a vertical line drawn between the chin and the base of the nose, while the lower lip should extend 2-3 mm beyond.
Warning:
Only doctors, with a license and liability insurance, can inject hyaluronic acid in Switzerland. Laboratories selling hyaluronic acid are only authorized to sell it to doctors with a license. There are many counterfeits that can endanger your body, some of which cannot be corrected by Hyaluronidase. In addition, an intra-vascular injection (into a vessel) can have dramatic consequences: necrosis, blindness.
Technique:
Hyaluronic acid: filling with a needle for more precision after topical anesthesia with cream
Lipofilling: fat removal (often inner knee or abdomen) under local anesthesia (no pain with an appropriate anesthesia), decantation and specific preparation of the fat (thus recovering part of the purified fat, rich in stem cells) and then reinjection by the same technique as hyaluronic acid.
Results:
Time frame for final results:
Hyaluronic acid: immediate
Lipofilling: 1 week for the filling
Longevity of results :
Hyaluronic acid: 3-15 months
Lipofilling: 5-10 years.
Before surgery:
Stop smoking 1 month before lipofilling
Do not take Aspirin 10 days before surgery, inform Dr. Lucas of any anticoagulant medication (Sintrom, Coumadin, Eliquis, etc.) to arrange for its discontinuation or replacement.
Take Arnica capsules 5 times a day for 5 days before surgery to prevent hematoma.
Contraindications hyaluronic acid: autoimmune diseases, pregnancy, breastfeeding
After surgery:
Post-operative pain: 1/10 often responding to Dafalgan
Social eviction:
Hyaluronic acid: no (discrete swelling for 24-48h)
Lipofilling: swelling and hematoma for 4-7 days
Sutures removal: no sutures
Return to work: immediate for hyaluronic acid, 2-3 days for lipofilling
Resumption of sports: 24 hours for hyaluronic acid, 2-3 days for lipofilling
Instructions:
Bed rest without major effort and ice mask for 2-3 days, as often as possible, to reduce swelling.
Do not compress the fat injection area if lipofilling (risk of fat loss)
Take Arnica capsules 5 times a day for 5 days after surgery to prevent hematoma
Stop smoking permanently to prevent fat and hyaluronic acid resorption
Hyaluronic acid: Control Dr Lucas 2 weeks
Lipofilling : Control Dr Lucas 2 weeks, 3 months
Complications:
– Infection, hematoma, asymmetry, under or overcorrection
– Intravascular emboli: it is important to have this procedure performed by a qualified physician who is used to injecting this area, which is richly vascularized with a very variable vessel anatomy. A vascular embolus if it moves into the circulation of the retina can lead to blindness or necrosis.
Alternatives and operations that can be combined:
Lip injection can be combined with CO2 laser around the mouth to treat fine lines or with a surgical lip lift
