Should lip fillers only be injected by a board certified plastic surgeon?

You should start out with 1cc of juvederm filler or restylane filler and go from there. You do not want to overdo too much filler in the lips. It also depends on the look you are going for too. You can always add more filler to the lips if needed. Just remember if you are going to do your lips and you do not want to bruise you should not take any aspirins or anything that will thin the blood since brusing can occur. One syringe is typically $550

Keep in mind that you are asking someone to sculpt your face.  In addition, they really need to understand anatomy.  In my office, I do not use physician extenders in my office.  I personally do all the treatments.  These are very important services.  Don't you want the most experienced person doing your service?

Generally speaking, it is safe for a medical professional extender to inject under the supervision of a physician. With appropriate training and technique, lip injections can be safe. Good luck. Dr. Aldo

You'll want to see a board certified doctor with skill, expertise, and the best techniques with lip augmentation. I recommend getting a formal evaluation with a cosmetic dermatologist. Look at doctors who do live filmings, teachings, and have good before and after photos on social media sites!  Best, Dr. Emer

Filler injections can be performed by cosmetic doctors, plastic surgeons, dermatologists, nurse practitioners and nurses who have proper training in filler injections.

As there are obviously many types of physicians here on RealSelf, it is a bit of a loaded question to ask whether only board-certified plastic surgeons should do your lip injections. Fillers are commonly performed by many medical professionals, which also includes PA's and nurse practitioners IF they are properly trained and supervised by physicians. Obviously, there are some turf wars among practitioners of cosmetic procedures, but generally the specialties most directly trained in filler injections are plastic surgery, ENT facial plastic, dermatology, and oculoplastic surgery. All these specialties have core training in facial aesthetics, though some focus more on certain aspects. A physician extender -- personnel acting under a physician who are not actually physicians themselves -- are commonly employed by these specialists to perform injections, laser treatments and other minimally invasive therapies. The quality of the result depends on the experience and training of the injector among other factors. I do not believe you should see one of these extenders unless they are operating out of the office of a physician who specializes in one of the fields I mentioned, so that there is a qualified "safety net" there. In my office, I currently do all the injections myself because I like doing them and do not feel any of the extenders I've met or worked with can do them as well as I do, but I would consider hiring one or more over time to take over the filler work if I find a truly excellent candidate.

There are a variety of practitioners that inject fillers including doctors, nurse practitioners and physicians assistants. I would say that you should at least be sure that your practitioner is well supervised by a doctor if he/she is not one. The biggest factor is really the practitioner's overall experience and aesthetic sense. Especially when it comes to lip sculpting some injectors have an artistic eye and others do not so take your time to find the right person for you. 

Hi racheldeck, The short answer is yes, it would be safe to use physicians extenders provided they are well-trained and had performed many procedures under the tutelage of a board-certified cosmetic surgeon or oculoplasy surgeon.Doctors are trained in anatomy but some of them get little aesthetic practice - which is why it makes sense to weigh in experience.All the best, Justin Harper, M.D.