Alist Nation Magazine July 2022
Angie Seelal, PA-C with Advanced Dermatology PC, Shares Tips on Getting a Pretty Pout
As masks come off, our lips once again are front – and almost center. “As a result, people may be interested in enhancing their lips’ looks,” notes Angie Seelal, PA-C specializing in Dermatology with Advanced Dermatology PC. “Fortunately, there are a lot of options to meet varied desires, both to enhance people’s natural lips, as well as to restore fullness and smoothness that may have been lost over the years.”
“Today’s menu of lip services,” elaborates Seelal, “includes everything from minimally invasive injections to add volume or address wrinkles all the way to surgical implants that offer more lasting augmentation.” And it turns out that, often, our lips could use a boost.
“That’s because lips, in particular, show the passage of time,” explains Seelal. “They play starring roles in our mouth’s functions and our facial expressions. Think about smiling! Over the years, the result is ‘dynamic’ wrinkles that result from our mouth muscles’ repeated movements.” In addition to dynamic wrinkles, as we get more mature, our bodies lose collagen and hyaluronic acid, key ingredients that support our skin. “As a result,” explains Seelal, “in addition to dynamic wrinkles, the skin around our lips develops ‘static’ wrinkles and our lips themselves lose fullness, becoming thinner.”
“Dermal filler injections can replenish hyaluronic acid and stimulate production of collagen,” says Seelal, “boosting our lips’ ‘plump’ and reducing the surrounding wrinkles.”
“For those interested in more extensive and longer lasting lip augmentation,” continues Seelal, “today’s implants have been improved and are now ‘biocompatible.’”
For those interested in plumping up their pucker, Seelal offers the following tips:
5 Tips to Get Luscious Lips
1. Clearly communicate the lip-look you want: “Whether you’re interested in augmenting or restoring,” advises Seelal, “it’s important to clearly communicate your goals, for example, bringing back lost volume, increasing your natural ‘plump,’ or addressing the dynamic ‘lip lines’ of years of smiles. Asking to see a portfolio of work and indicating your goals can aid in ensuring that your specialist fully understands your desired outcome and allows him or her to explain what is possible through different procedures.”
2. Consider starting slow: “Patients can benefit from a gradual approach,” suggests Seelal, “for example, choosing hyaluronic acid (HA) injections to increase volume. HA is a naturally occurring substance in our body and can be customized for varying levels of intervention. The fact that HA is not permanent and can even be reversed can offer reassurance to those considering lip enhancement for the first time.”
3. A ‘combo’ can address more than one need: “’Botox’ injections,” notes Seelal, “are effective at addressing dynamic wrinkles. HA – for example Restylane, Juvederm, Volbella and Belotero – and collagen boosters like Radiesse add volume and firmness. There are different cross-linking technologies and densities of hyaluronic acid fillers to provide us with a variety of textures and densities to achieve natural results whether you want to simply fill fine lines around the lips, or create a fuller lip. The different procedures can work together, enhancing each other’s impact.”
4. Carefully choose your specialist: “Faces are complicated, with forty-two muscles,” Seelal emphasizes. “For lips themselves to function, they require intricate muscle coordination. Plus, each person’s facial characteristics are unique. Make sure that you choose someone with experience who you feel comfortable communicating with.”
5. Understand the process and outcome: “You want to work with someone that you feel very comfortable communicating with so that you can make informed decisions and fully understand what is involved,” advises Seelal, “from the level of intervention, to follow-up care, to duration of effect. Implants such as Alloderm involve surgery. Filler and ‘botox’ injections, on the other hand, are less invasive and also typically not as long-lasting.”
“The range of choices for lip treatments,” concludes Seelal, “can help us to put our best face forward when we take off our masks.” Bio: Angie Seelal, PA-C, is a Certified Physician Assistant through the National Commission of Certification of Physician Assistants. advanceddermatologypc.com
