What’s the average length of the space for the area from the nose down to the upper lip? (Photos)

Question

Curious, as I seek out a doctor, the length I should be striving for. Obviously, everyone is different and every surgery is customized. But would like to have some kind of a marker to know how far off I am currently.

Farhad Rafizadeh, MD · Answer

This is a very interesting question and is one of the reasons people would seek a lip lift. As you may have noticed, most beautiful models have a  short upper lip.  Ideally the upper lip should be less than 1.5 cm. It can be made as short as 1 cm, but one has to consider the other elements of the patient's face, in particular their upper teeth. It is desirable that at rest, one shows some incisor teeth, but if the teeth are too long, there could be too much teeth show and during smiling we would like to avoid the gums to show. As you can see there is a lot of factors to consider when we make a decision about how much to remove. I usually use a mirror and show the patient different lip positions and tell then how it corresponds to the amounts of skin removal necessary to achieve those results.

Kyle Kimura, MD · Answer

This is a great question and thank you for providing excellent photos! 
Generally, all of these measurements that are reported are based on traditional "ideals" and vary from patient to patient by gender/culture/ethnicity/etc. But the typical goal (at least when performing a lip lift) is for the length from base of the nose to the vermillion border (junction of your white lip and red lip) to be approximately 1.3-1.5cm. However, your surgeon must also consider how these changes would fit the rest of your face. For example, you also want to have 3-8mm of dental display (ie how much your teeth show) when slightly opening your mouth (*different than amount showing when smiling). 
Hope this helps!Kyle Kimura, MD

Jed H. Horowitz, MD, FACS · Answer

Good day! Thank you for providing photo with your query. The ideal length is around 11mm but I believe there are no exact "measurements" for everyone because we all have unique shapes and sizes. It is still all about the ratio that is proportion which makes your face symmetrical. Find a board-certified plastic surgeon and have an in person examination and discuss realistic goals and expectations. Best of luck! #RealSelf100

Alicia Sigler, MD · Answer

Thank you so much for your question. It all depends on the measurements of your face, but it has been accepted that the distance in a female's face should be between 1.2 and 1.5 cm.

Ricardo L. Rodriguez, MD · Answer

Great question as you begin to research lip lifts and board certified plastic surgeons for consultation.
Beautiful lips tend to have 3 things in common: a well defined cupid's bow, a nice fullness, and a distance of about 1.1 to 1.2 centimeters from the base of the nose to the vermilion border of the upper lip. Interestingly enough, that distance tends to be pretty consistent regardless of height or weight though you are absolutely right that every surgery is customized specifically for the patient and the patient's goals.
Be sure to research lip lift procedures and speak with board certified plastic surgeons. I find the best lip lift results are from a simple and conservative approach. I do not cut muscles or nerves, as I believe that these facial elements should remain in their natural state. And it is much better to not take quite enough skin than to take too much skin.
Best wishes!

Jeffrey Jumaily, MD · Answer

You may be off by 3-4mm based on these photos alone. Like you said, we don't use exact measurements, we customize it based on how much tooth show you have and other dimensions of the lips and face. We are happy to help if you would like. Best wishes

What’s the average length of the space for the area from the nose down to the upper lip? (Photos)

Answers (6)

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