These days, getting bigger lips seems to be everyone's goal. We have lipstick plumpers and lip injections, all made to give us a fuller pout. But what if you have the opposite problem? The latest plastic surgery trend is here to solve that with lip reduction. Although not yet as popular in the U.S. as it is in other countries, reducing the size of your lips with surgery is an option for those that aren't buying into the bigger lips trend. Here are 6 things you need to know about lip reduction plastic surgery.
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1. The lip reduction surgery trend first popped up on Instagram.
NewBeauty reports that this trend first popped up on Instagram, with those who are getting the plastic surgery procedure posting their photos and tagging them with #lipreduction.
2. Lip reduction surgery is popular mostly in Asian countries.
Although artificially plumping your lips is still quite popular in the U.S. and other parts of the world, lip reduction surgery (which makes lips smaller in size instead) seems to be mostly happening in Asia.
3. The surgery involves removing skin and using stitches to create a new lip line.
The surgery works by "removing skin from the lips along the dry-wet border of the vermillion," according to New York City plastic surgeon Dr. Melissa Doft. Then stitches are used to create a smaller, thinner lip line.
4. Lip reduction surgery is an outpatient procedure that takes 15-30 minutes.
Depending on how much tissue needs to be removed, the procedure can take between 15 and 30 minutes per lip. It's an outpatient procedure that only requires local anesthesia, but don't forget: This is still surgery.
5. The pain is tolerable and recovery can take up to a week.
Stitches remain in place for a week, and then either dissolve or are removed naturally. The pain is tolerable, but Dr. Doft advises that patients "eat a soft diet until the swelling resolves." This can take a couple of days, but up to a week.
6. Lip reduction surgery can cost from $1,000-$3,000 and is permanent.
Unlike lip injections (which dissolve after a year and require maintenance), this procedure is permanent. Because of that, the price tag is higher: $1,000 to $3,000, according to DocShop, and even more depending on where you live.
