Lala Lip Graft

Shortcomings of Standardized Lip Augmentation Techniques

The overarching goal of any lip enhancement service is to create a lush, naturally-full lip appearance while avoiding the clichéd results associated with an overworked lip augmentation (i.e. swollen, puffy lips, “trout lip” deformities, “duck lips”). Although selecting a talented physician to perform your lip augmentation procedure is of crucial importance, even skilled practitioners are limited by the innate flaws of many popular lip augmentation options, as we have illustrated below:

• Synthetic Lip Implants: the unnatural feel and obvious composition/textural differences between the implanted artificial material and the actual lips is a source of frustration among many synthetic lip implant patients, which is why many of Dr. Moelleken’s patients come to him seeking revisional lip procedures, asking him to remove their synthetic lip implants before performing a more natural-looking lip augmentation technique.
• Autologous Fat Transfer: a labor-intensive process that can cause significant damage to the living network of fat cells, the autologous fat transfer method involves the extraction, purification, and subsequent re-injection of the patient’s own fat cells into the lips, and requires the physician to accurately anticipate and account for the number of fat cells that will not survive the transfer. Any miscalculations can lead to overcompensation, lumpiness in areas where the surviving fat cells are distributed unevenly, and/or the undesirable appearance of permanently swollen lips. This technique is also limited in its ability to produce long-term results, as patients will unavoidably experience a slow depletion of the graft material over time.

The most concerning aspect of the fat injection technique, however, is the potential development of unwelcome aesthetic changes to the lips. Because the fat is injected into the lips somewhat randomly, this increases the risk of unnatural clumping, and for the vermillion border of the lips to become dulled or asymmetrical. There have also been several disturbing reports and photos of lip injection patients whose lips swelled to alarming proportions as the patients gained weight.

• Semi-permanent or Silicone Filler Injections (i.e. Alloderm, Radiesse, Artefill, Radiance, Artecoll): fillers in this category have not been granted FDA-approval for placement in the lips, and have been linked to a number of chronic, potentially irreversible complications (i.e. “trout lip” distortions; blunting of the vermillion border; granuloma formation; permanent swelling of the lips; and other potentially disfiguring tissue deformities).
• Injectable Dermal Fillers: lip injections with a hyaluronic-acid based dermal filler (i.e. Juvederm or Restylane) is a relatively safe and effective lip augmentation technique; however, this method is limited in terms of long-term efficacy and provides only temporary enhancement of the lips. Periodic maintenance injections will need to be scheduled at regular intervals to maintain your results, which can become increasingly costly and inconvenient over time. Also, patients often remark that their lips never look quite the same after dermal filler injections—this is because the lip shape and size are perpetually in a state of flux, as the filler material has either just been placed, has begun to fade, or has been completely absorbed by the body.

Never one to be confined by the limitations of standardized aesthetic medicine protocols esteemed Beverly Hills plastic surgeon Dr. Brent Moelleken took it upon himself to create a new lip augmentation procedure, which he has termed the “LaLa Lip Graft.” This remarkably innovative service incorporates his signature LiveFill® grafting technique and is designed specifically to avoid the complications associated with traditional lip augmentation procedures while helping his patients safely achieve the pillowy soft, voluptuous lips they desire.