3 years after lip filler - are my lines, lumps and sagging due to the filler or my anatomy and can this be corrected? (photos)

This is my expertise and a huge portion of my practice. Asymmetry is normal and expected. Buccal fat pad gives slimming not symmetry. Masseter botox will make you slimmer and make the jawline more loose. Fillers help give shaping and contouring. If you want perfect or close to perfect symmetry you need maxillofacial surgery or implants customized. I suggest seeing an expert to go through all options. Most of my younger clients use fillers to give them shaping especially on the cheeks, jawline, and chin which make the face look more slim and tight; and threads such as PDO or Instalift can build collagen and support the facial shaping and skin looseness over time, slowing down the aging process and given the face a more “snatched” look; and morpheus8 or PiXel8 deep microneedling RF can tighten crepe skin especially on the neck and jawline and is great for long term tightening of the full face, neck and chest; its often used to give the face a slimmer more sculpted look because it tightens the skin and gives lift. an early face lift can be performed as well even in younger clients if they want a different facial shape, maxillofacial surgery with bone breaking or shaving can also be done. For facial slimming a combination of treatments are always needed. Options include: 1. Buccal fat pad removal to reduce fat on the lower face 2. Factite or Renuvion/J Plasma to tighten the lower face, jawline, and chin to reduce fat and give the jawline and neck tightening and shaping. 3. Botox to the masseter to reduce the muscular size of the jaw giving the face an illusion of being more slender 4. Fillers to the jawline, chin, cheeks, temples and brow help to shape the face and make it more angled and defined Always use at home derma rolling (see link to Emerageskin x anteageMD roller plus stem cells/hyaluronic acid ampules) and peels like emeragecosmetics enlighten or aerify that can be used to improve skin quality and tighten the skin while improving wrinkles, pigmentation, acne, and Melasma. See an expert who does facial shaping with surgical and non surgical methods to get a comprehensive option. Best, Dr. Emer.

Unfortunately, your concerns are not well demonstrated in your photographs. That is probably a good thing since you do not appear to have an unusual lip appearance. Since this is your biggest insecurity, please consider Consulting with a reputable facial plastic surgeon or dermatologist who specializes in lip augmentation procedures. I hope this is helpful! Sincerely, Dr Joseph

They can also cause unwanted lumps and bumps. The companies that make these products have them on the market as devices. That means they get a little less scrutiny by the FDA than drugs. It is my opinion that this has led to a situation where consumers do not get a sufficiently accurate picture of what to expect from these products. How long they persist in the tissue is one of those areas. Initially doctors were told these products last about 6 months. That was later revised to about 9 to 12 months. That later time frame is accurate if we are talking about how long you can expect the clinical volumizing effect to persist. After that many need what is called a "top off service" to restore initial treatment volume. It is often assumed that the product disappears and that is the basis for the need for a top-off. That is not really accurate. It is more accurate to say that these products diffuse. Here is a dirty little secret--these fillers persist for years and year. Yes, they slowly break down but as they do, they often hold more volume in more areas than they did when initially injected. This is best managed by a sufficiently large dose of hyaluronidase, an injectable enzyme that breaks down the filler, to break down the old filler. Because the filler persists so long, the enzyme is an essential part of long term use of these fillers. Even now you can have the hyaluronic acid filler removed from your lip. Once it is fully removed you may want a fresh treatment or decide to go without fillers.

I'm sorry to read about your concerns regarding your lip filler experience. Dissolving the remaining filler is indeed a possibility and can be achieved through a procedure called hyaluronidase injection. This treatment breaks down the hyaluronic acid filler, allowing it to be naturally absorbed by the body. However, it's important to note that dissolving the filler may not necessarily resolve all the concerns you mentioned, as there could be other factors at play.

Your healthcare professional will be able to assess the condition of your lips and determine the best course of action to address your concerns. They may recommend dissolving the remaining filler, additional treatments, or provide alternative solutions based on your specific situation.

Best of luck !

If HA fillers were used it is likely that after three years the lip filler has metabolized. What you are noticing could be from the normal aging process. Fillers can help diminish the appearance of these folds. You also may explore Morpheus8. These treatments combine RF technology with microneedling to improve overall skin tone and texture.

Unless you had issues with your initial filler experience is most likely represents facial aging and it’s not related to your filler.
Three years is a third of a decade, and that is enough time to change someone’s appearance.
Lip fillers, do have potential permanence, but it normally represents as volume in areas previously treated.
Best,
Mats Hagstrom, MD