Cleft lip repairs and residual differences of the lip can be thought of in a few different categories that can also blend in together. 1. Deficiencies in Volume 2. Alignment of the anatomical borders of the lip. The vermilion (red Lip), White Roll, and lip mucosa (wet portion of your lip). 3. Lip Projection It is important to get the diagnosis correct as certain procedure may or may not address the correct differences. In my experience, deficiencies in volume are best addressed with fillers or fat grafting. I have found that I can be a bit more precise with fillers, however, they require upkeep, where as fat grafting is more permanent. However, fat grafting does require a trip to the OR. Alignment issues are best managed with surgery and any amount of filler will not correct these issues with much patient satisfaction. These surgeries are often combined with some sort of lip volume augmenting technique such as Fat grafting or Dermal grafting. Lip Projection or being able to close your lips properly could depend on how your dentition or Jaw relationship is situated. In my experience having an evaluation with a provider that treats many of these cases is important to get the right diagnosis and long lasting result.
