Rhinoplasty - Gummy Smile 1 Year Post Op

Believe it or not, most people will have temporary heaviness of their upper lip and decreased ability to elevate their upper lip after rhinoplasty surgery due to cartilage grafting that is placed at the base of the nose. Please consider re-asking a question with both before and after photos for a more definitive evaluation. Thank you. Sincerely, Dr Joseph

Thank you for posting such an easy question that does not even require that I see photos of you! Gummy smiles can be effectively improved with Botox injections. Please do your research, however, and find a qualified injector with many years of experience.

Thanks Curious_Wonder for your question! A gummy smile after rhinoplasty, especially after a revision, can be concerning. It can be caused by a few factors like swelling in the upper lip and surrounding area which is common after rhinoplasty. Sometimes, this swelling pulls the lip upward, highlighting the gums. Meanwhile, if surgery is performed on the base of the nose or the columella (the skin between your nostrils), the muscles controlling the upper lip may become temporarily weaker. The way your lip glides when you smile may be impacted by this deficiency. Following surgery, scar tissue may develop, which occasionally limits upper lip mobility as well. Lastly, the location of the upper lip may occasionally be impacted by modifications made to the nasal structure during rhinoplasty.
In most cases, a gummy smile after rhinoplasty is temporary and will resolve as the swelling subsides and the muscles regain their strength. Several weeks or even months may pass during this time. The gummy smile, though, can be permanent in some situations. If the gummy smile is still present after a year, it is less likely to resolve on its own. Here are a few potential avenues for treatment:
-Use of Botox to relax related muscles.

-Steroid Injections: By lowering swelling and inflammation, steroid injections can help make the gummy grin seem better.
-Surgery: To address the gummy smile surgery can be required in some situations. Depending on what caused the issue, there are a few different surgical techniques that can be used.
Hope this was helpful!
Best wishes,
Dr Ali Sajjadian