What it means for a patient
- A lip lift that also tightens or trims the deeper muscle layer aims to take tension off the skin scar under the nose.
- In this group, 11 of 600 had a raised scar that was treated with laser, and none needed another operation.
- Limits: a retrospective review, women only, mean age 36.4, no comparison with skin-only lip lifts, and results described without a measured scale.
Why this paper matters
It reports 600 SMAS-based subnasal lip lifts, with 11 minor scar problems and no revisions. It supports tailoring plication or excision to lip volume to control lip eversion while lowering skin tension.
Overview
Upper lip aging includes volume loss, looser tissue, a longer skin lip and less visible red lip. Skin-only lip lifts may not fix these changes and may scar badly when the closure is under tension. The authors reviewed 600 women treated between 2020 and 2024 with SMAS-based lip lifts, choosing plication or excision by lip volume and tissue, and assessed standardized photos taken at least 12 months after surgery.
Findings
- 600 female patients; mean age 36.4 years.
- Mean follow-up 14.6 months; photographs at a minimum of 12 months.
- Technique: SMAS plication or SMAS excision, chosen by lip volume and tissue characteristics.
- Minor scar elevation in 11 patients, managed with fractionated carbon dioxide laser.
- No surgical revisions were required.
- Overall results and lip contour were described as clinically satisfactory.
- Level of evidence: V.
Terms
- Subnasal lip lift: removing a strip of skin under the nose to shorten the upper lip.
- SMAS: here, the muscle and fibrous layer under the skin of the upper lip.
- Plication: folding and stitching tissue to tighten it without removing it.
- Excision: cutting tissue out.
- Vermilion show: how much of the red part of the lip is visible.
- Lip eversion: the upper lip turning slightly outward, showing more red lip.
- Fractionated CO2 laser: a laser that treats tiny columns of skin, used here to flatten raised scars.