Lips and Mouth

Lip Enhancement

Lip enhancement in Marylebone and St John’s Wood, London, with Dr Toro Ogundoyin, using four different treatments for the lip area chosen for what your lips actually need rather than filler by default.

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Close view of a mouth and the skin around it

The short answer

What is lip enhancement?

Most people asking about their lips do not want bigger lips. They want the shape back, or the border to read clearly again, or the lines above the top lip gone, or a smile that shows less gum. Those are four different problems and filler only solves one of them.

Dr Toro treats the lip area with four tools. Hyaluronic acid filler for volume, shape and definition of the cupid’s bow and the border. Skin boosters for hydration and for the fine lines around the mouth, without adding size. Anti-wrinkle treatment for a lip flip, for a gummy smile and for softening perioral lines. And mono PDO threads to define the border and build collagen in the skin above it.

Which of those you need is decided by looking at your lips rather than by what you came in to ask for. The standard throughout is that your lips should look like your lips, just on a better day.

Lip treatment at a glance

Treatment time30 to 45 minutes
NumbingAnaesthetic in the filler, topical available
Results visibleImmediately
Filler lastsAround 6 months
DowntimeSwelling for 24 to 72 hours
ReviewAt 2 weeks
From£300

Lip treatment can help to:

Restore volume lips have lost with age

Lips thin and the upper lip lengthens over time. Replacing a small amount of volume, placed to respect the shape you already have, restores the proportion rather than changing it.

Define a border that has faded

A clear vermillion border and a readable cupid’s bow do more for how lips look than size does, and they can be treated with filler or with mono threads.

Hydrate lips without making them bigger

Skin boosters place hyaluronic acid into the lip and the skin around it for hydration and smoothness, which is the answer for anyone who wants better lips and no more of them.

Soften the lines above your top lip

Perioral lines respond to a combination: skin boosters or threads for the skin, and low-dose anti-wrinkle treatment for the muscle that purses it.

Show a little more lip and a little less gum

A lip flip relaxes the muscle at the upper lip so it rolls slightly outward. Gummy smile treatment lowers the lip line when you smile. Both are small doses with a noticeable effect.

Even up lips that are asymmetric

Very few mouths are symmetrical. Small differences in placement between the two sides are usually what makes a result look natural rather than constructed.

What lip treatment is used for

Follow any of these to read what Dr Toro would consider and why.

Areas treated

Lips

Upper lip
Lower lip
Cupid’s bow
Vermillion border
Lip corners

Around the mouth

Perioral lines
Gummy smile
Downturned corners

2 Locations

Lip treatment near you, at either London clinic

UNTIL Marylebone 1 Orchard Street, London W1H 6HJ View location →
Kailash Centre, St John’s Wood 7 Newcourt Street, London NW8 7AA View location →

UNTIL Marylebone View on Google Maps →

Boundaries of practice

What's not treated

Good practice means saying no when indicated:

Pregnancy or breastfeeding
Under 18 years of age
Active cold sore outbreak or a recent one at the treatment site
Known allergy to hyaluronic acid products or to lidocaine
Active infection or inflammation around the mouth
Recent or planned dental work within two weeks of treatment

Patient journey

What to expect from lip treatment

Consultation & preparation

Avoid aspirin, vitamin E and fish oil for a week beforehand and alcohol for 24 hours. If you get cold sores, tell Dr Toro in advance so preventative treatment can be arranged, because lip treatment can trigger an outbreak. Do not book in the week before an important event.

During treatment

Dermal filler: volume, hydration, shape and definition

Hyaluronic acid filler tailored to your goal, whether that is enhancing volume subtly, redefining shape, or adding definition to the cupid’s bow and the lip borders. Placement is what makes the difference between a lip that looks fuller and one that looks done.

Nearly all the products contain local anaesthetic, and Dr Toro works to a technique she reports lets most patients go back to work straight afterwards. Lip filler typically lasts around six months, faster than most areas because the mouth is in constant movement.

Skin boosters: hydration and smoothing, without volume

Hyaluronic acid placed directly into the lip or the surrounding skin improves hydration from within, leaving lips smoother and better nourished without changing their size.

It is the right treatment for dehydrated lips and for fine lines around the mouth, and it suits patients who are clear that they do not want volume.

Anti-wrinkle treatment: lip flip, gummy smile, perioral lines

A lip flip relaxes the muscle at the upper lip border so the lip rolls slightly outward and shows a little more of itself, with no filler at all. Gummy smile treatment relaxes the muscles that lift the upper lip too high when you smile.

The same approach softens the vertical lines above the lip. Dosing here is small and precise, because too much affects speech and drinking from a cup.

Mono PDO threads: border definition and fine lines

Fine absorbable threads placed under the skin along the lip border stimulate collagen, giving immediate definition and smoothing the fine lines around the mouth over the following months.

It is a good option where the skin above the lip has lost quality, and it combines well with either filler or skin boosters depending on whether volume is also wanted.

Aftercare

Expect swelling for 24 to 72 hours and judge nothing before then. Avoid strenuous exercise, alcohol, saunas and very hot drinks for 24 hours, and keep lipstick off for the rest of the day. Ice helps. Any bruising settles within a few days and arnica can help.

Pricing

Lip treatment prices in Marylebone and St John’s Wood

Lip filler

From £300

Lip flip or gummy smile (anti-wrinkle treatment) Priced as an anti-wrinkle area.

From £185

Skin booster, lips and perioral area

From £240

Mono PDO threads

From £600

Which of the four approaches you need, and whether more than one belongs in the plan, is agreed at consultation before anything is booked. Prices are reviewed periodically.

Written and medically reviewed by Dr Toro Ogundoyin, Aesthetic Doctor: MBBS, DIP. FSRH · General Medical Council: lip treatment planned and carried out by a GMC-registered doctor, with hyaluronidase reversal available.

Real results

Before and after natural-looking lip filler — Natural lip enhancement with dermal filler, patient in her early thirtiesBefore, and two weeks after

Before and after natural-looking lip filler on mature lips — Natural lip enhancement with dermal filler, patient in her early sixtiesBefore, and immediately after

See more results

FAQ

Lip treatment questions

Will my lips look obviously done?

Not if the plan is right. Dr Toro treats shape and proportion before size, places as little product as the result allows, and will decline a request that would not suit your face. Patients in their sixties are treated with the same technique as patients in their thirties, at volumes that suit each mouth.

How long does lip filler last?

Around six months for most people. Lips break filler down faster than almost anywhere else because the mouth moves constantly. How quickly yours goes depends on your metabolism and how much movement your mouth does, and top-ups are usually smaller than the first treatment.

Does lip filler hurt?

Lips are sensitive, so this is a fair question. Nearly all the fillers used contain local anaesthetic, and topical numbing is available beforehand. Most patients describe pressure and brief stinging rather than pain. Tell Dr Toro if you are anxious and she will take it slowly.

How swollen will I be afterwards?

Expect swelling for 24 to 72 hours, and understand that the first day is not the result. Some patients look noticeably fuller immediately and settle to something far more subtle within a few days. Do not book lip treatment in the week before an event you care about.

What if I want better lips but not bigger ones?

Then you probably want skin boosters, mono threads or a lip flip rather than filler. Hydration, a defined border and a little more lip showing can change how the mouth reads without adding any volume at all. This is one of the most common conversations Dr Toro has.

Get Started

Book your consultation
with Dr Toro

Dr. Toro Aesthetics • 1 Orchard Street, UNTIL Marylebone, London W1H 6HJ • Kailash Centre, 7 Newcourt Street, London NW8 7AA

Book

Consultations are £90 and include a written treatment and skincare plan.