Hyaluronic Acid Injection (Lips: Juvederm VOLBELLA)

Treatment details: Hyaluronic Acid Injection (Lips: Juvederm VOLBELLA)

VOLBELLA has a small particle size and a low tendency to draw water, which suits lips where the difference between a defined border and a swollen one is a fraction of a millilitre. Volume was kept deliberately conservative and placed along the vermilion border rather than into the body of the lip, so the shape reads as fuller without projecting forward. Two weeks is the right point to photograph lips. Injection swelling has resolved by then and the gel has integrated, so what appears in the image is the result the patient keeps. It is worth reviewing at this stage before adding more, since the tissue often relaxes slightly over the first month.

Expect the lips to look swollen and slightly out of shape for the first two or three days; the shape is judged after two weeks. Bruising at the entry points and tenderness when eating are common. Injection can bring on a cold sore in people who get them, and antiviral cover may be advised. Firm spots or a difference between the sides can persist and be corrected at review. Vessel blockage is rare and treated urgently. The material is absorbed within about a year.