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Lip Augmentation

Your lips age faster than other areas of your skin because they are often the most neglected skin on your body. Lips have been compared to a sponge that, when subjected to moisture, absorbs water and plumps. But, when dehydrated, shrinks and dries out. Your lips are always exposed to the elements, so over time, they can lose their natural fullness and sheen. Fortunately, Dr. Brent Moelleken offers lip augmentation procedures that can safely and beautifully restore your lips.

Taking proper care of your lips can delay the signs of aging. But, once deep lines are present, there is little that can be done without professional intervention. Besides environmental factors, gravity, smiling, chewing, frowning, and squinting are other conditions that influence your lips.

stock image of model smiling with black dress

LiveFill®

Dr. Moelleken has been developing LiveFill® for years, and it has become a regular part of his practice. It is is a cutting-edge method of augmenting wrinkled or “deflated” areas in your lips and face. As a technique that expands on decades of research, he is proud to present it to his patients.

It involves grafts from your own body tissue that are fully alive. The material is obtained as a customized fine graft with blood vessels in it. No synthetic fillers or traumatized fat needed.

Once you receive LiveFill®, it becomes an integral part of your body’s tissue, and this is why the results are permanent. It registers as natural tissue, with its own blood supply, something no other filler can do.

This differs fundamentally from fat injections, which incorporate sucking fat into a syringe then injecting it through a needle. It is not surprising that this process is highly damaging to a living network of cells.

With LiveFill®, Dr. Moelleken fashions completely untraumatized tissue into small, delicate grafts resembling strings of pearls, allowing them to maintain their structural integrity. The genetic markers of LiveFill® are identical to the patient’s, so there is no chance of rejection.

Before and After

before after lip augmentation procedure patient 1
before after lip augmentation procedure patient 2

More Lip Augmentation Examples

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The LaLa Lip Graft

Your face does not age in lines; it ages in areas. For this reason, it is better to fill in entire regions rather than placing something beneath a single line. LiveFill® is placed underneath the areas that need filling. During the procedure, Dr. Moelleken takes cell grafts, which are small strips of your own, living tissue. Through tiny incisions, he inserts the tissue into your lips. He calls this the LaLa Lip Graft.

Because the tissue is taken from you, no artificial material, plastic, or temporary substance is involved. Because of this, the healing process starts immediately as you develop your own blood supply into the grafts. The LaLa Lip Graft looks natural.

Patients who have had previous fillers are still candidates for a LaLa Lip Graft. However, Dr. Moelleken allows time for the temporary fillers to go away. This will give him a good idea of how your lips will eventually look with the fillers gone. The swelling from the LaLa Lip Graft is much less than you get from fat injections because the amount put in is less substantive

Compare To A Fat Injection

During a fat injection procedure, the doctor has to anticipate how many cells will not survive, so he has to overcompensate. This is why when all the initial healing subsides; there is still swelling in place.

In addition, your white blood cells will focus on your lips and work on the dead fat cells, eventually destroying the fat injection and reducing volume. With the LaLa Lip Graft, research indicates that the cell material used is approximately 88% alive, and studies show it will last forever. Smoking can kill the graft, however, and patients must take good care of themselves to ensure permanent survival.

Results and Downtime of Lip Augmentation

Healing time with LiveFill® is very rapid since no over-correction is necessary. Still, we typically recommend taking a long weekend to rest and recover. Minor swelling and tenderness are expected and normal but will go away quickly.

Depending on Dr. Moelleken’s recommendation, you may resume your regular exercise routine in approximately two weeks. However, each patient heals differently, and Dr. Moelleken will walk you through your individual healing process.

Occasionally, minor irregularities or an incomplete take of the graft, depending on the patient’s biology, can result from the LiveFill® technique. Even if this happens, the problems are easily corrected using local anesthesia.

What is the Dr. Brent Lip Augmentation Advantage?

Dr. Moelleken is very excited about originating the permanent lip augmentation procedure. He prefers this method over fat injections. The reasoning is because completely non-traumatized grafts are fashioned specifically for the targeted area with better viability.

In contrast, the process for fat injection involves placing the fat through a small cannula, further traumatizing the fat and decreasing its viability. The body tries to dissolve the introduced fat, making it less long-lasting than LiveFill®.

LiveFill® means less initial swelling, more predictability of the graft survival, and a soft, natural result. Lip augmentation should maximally enhance your existing lips, not produce a distorted version of them. This is the LiveFill® difference.

Our Unique Practice and Approach

When Dr. Moelleken performs lip augmentation, he looks at your entire face and tracks the features that make you unique. He considers the procedure an artistic endeavor. In every treatment, he seeks to create or restore harmony to your face as a whole.

He also takes the practical side into account. You use your lips countless times throughout the day, and an augmentation procedure should consider this.

During your consultation, Dr. Moelleken carefully determines the best look all-inclusively. He will look at you as a whole person and develops a plan based on matching your unique look.

Dr. Moelleken is excited about this promising procedure, and he frequently incorporates LiveFill® while performing facelifts (including his trademarked 360 Facelift®), blepharoplasty, brow lifts, or his signature superficial cheek lift operation.

Candidates for Lip Augmentation

One of the most noticeable signs of aging is the lines and wrinkles around your lips. As you get older, you will lose volume in your lips, making them look worn out. Lip augmentation restores a fuller shape to your mouth, giving you more youthful lips.

Some of the reasons to undergo lip enhancement include:

  • Achieving a more sensuous look
  • Providing more balance to your facial features
  • Restoring lost volume and shape
  • Increasing self-confidence in your appearance
  • Lip enhancement or augmentation is very important for enhancing your facial appearance. Dr. Moelleken wants his patients to know they have several options available to choose

Temporary Lip Augmentaiton

Temporary lip augmentation is best for patients new to the procedure. You can see how you look after an injection, but you avoid the permanent commitment. Temporary injections last only a couple of months. Once they fade, you can adjust for future treatments.

Permanent Lip Augmentation

This procedure is best once you have a look that you know works for you and are ready to commit.

Moving from temporary to permanent injections in steps can help you decide what you specifically want. It is best to have Dr. Moelleken perform all the work, including the temporary fillers. This way, you can communicate which look is best for you and build upon it.

What to Avoid

Dr. Moelleken cautions strongly against the use of silicone or any semi-permanent filler in any form for your lips. Semi-permanent injectable fillers such as silicone, Radiesse, Radiance, Artecoll, and Artefill are associated with numerous problems, and he does not offer them.

Dr. Moelleken also advises against lip implants that are actually implanted. He believes you can feel the synthetic implant in your lip, making the composition strange. Permanent fillers such as Gortex, SAM, or lip implants are unnatural, and patients treated with them are often disappointed by the long period of swelling followed by a loss of the graft over time.

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Schedule A Consultation Today

Dr. Brent Moelleken and his team are ready to answer any questions and walk with you every step of the way. If you are prepared to take back your body, don’t hesitate to schedule a consultation today.

Dr. Brent, Beverly Hills Plastic Surgery, will work with you individually to develop a plan unique to you. If you are considering a lip augmentation treatment or any other procedures, call us to learn more.

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