Lip hydration and lip augmentation are two different treatments using similar products. This one improves how the lip looks and feels without making it bigger.
There are two lip treatments and they are frequently sold as one. Understanding the difference is the most useful thing on this page.
Augmentation adds volume, shape or border definition. It changes the proportion of the lip against the rest of the face, and it is what most people mean when they say lip filler.
Hydration does something else. A small amount of a softer product is placed into the body of the lip, where hyaluronic acid draws in and holds water. The lip becomes smoother, more supple and better hydrated, fine vertical lines within it soften, and it stays close to the same size. Nobody looks at the result and sees a treatment. They see a lip that is not dry.
At Dr Ellie Sateei’s London and Sevenoaks clinics that distinction is the first conversation, before any product is chosen, because a great deal of lip work does not turn out as the patient imagined for the simple reason that the two treatments were never separated. Results vary between individuals.
Hyaluronic acid attracts and holds water, so it hydrates the tissue it sits in as well as occupying space. In a hydration treatment the second property is being used and the first is being kept deliberately minimal.
Three things make that possible. The product is softer and less structured than one chosen for augmentation. The quantity is small. And the placement is within the body of the lip rather than along the border, because product placed on the border defines and everts the lip, which is a change in shape rather than in quality.
The result is a lip that reflects light better, feels less dry, and has smoother fine lines within it. What it will not do is make the lip fuller in any way you would describe as fuller, and if that is what you are hoping for, this is not the treatment and Dr Sateei will say so rather than quietly add a little more.
Lip proportion is assessed in the context of the face even here, because a hydration treatment in a lip that has thinned considerably may look like very little, and a patient who would actually be happier with a small amount of volume should be told that rather than talked out of it.
Fine vertical lines in the skin above the lip are a separate matter. Those sit outside the lip itself and respond to conservative anti-wrinkle treatment, a skin booster or resurfacing rather than to hydration within the lip, and they are frequently the real reason a patient books.
Lip hydration may suit you if you are looking to:
It is not the right treatment if what you want is a fuller or more defined lip, where augmentation is the honest answer. It is not the right treatment for lines in the skin above the lip, where a different approach applies. And it is not the right treatment where the lip has thinned to the point that hydration alone would be barely visible, which Dr Sateei will tell you at the consultation.
As an injectable treatment, it is not recommended during pregnancy or breastfeeding. A history of cold sores should be disclosed, as treatment can trigger an outbreak and may need antiviral cover.
Numbing cream is applied first and most products contain a local anaesthetic such as lidocaine, so discomfort is generally mild. Treatment takes around 30 minutes including numbing.
Lips swell more than anywhere else on the face, and they do so even after a small, superficial treatment. Expect noticeable swelling for the first 24 to 48 hours, during which the lip will look fuller than the final result, and some bruising is common. This is worth planning around: allow two weeks before an event rather than two days.
The result settles at around two weeks, which is when it should be judged. Duration is generally six to twelve months and tends toward the shorter end of that range, because the lip moves constantly and metabolises product faster than structural areas such as the cheek or jaw. Results vary between individuals.
Hyaluronic acid can be dissolved where clinically appropriate, from £350, although this is rarely relevant to a hydration treatment given how little product is used.
| Treatment | London | Sevenoaks |
|---|---|---|
| Lip filler | From £550 | From £495 |
| Lip hydration protocol | TBC | TBC |
New patient consultation, £195 at both clinics. If you go ahead with treatment on the day of your appointment, this fee is deducted from the cost of your treatment.Prices correct as published and subject to change.
“A good number of the patients who come to me asking for lip filler do not want bigger lips at all. They want lips that are not dry and lined, and nobody has ever offered them that as a separate thing. So I separate it. I tell them what hydration will do and what it will not, and quite often that is the end of the conversation and they book the smaller treatment. It is the least profitable version of this appointment and it is usually the correct one.”
Dr Ellie Sateei has over two decades of experience in dermatology and aesthetics.
Hydration places a small amount of a softer product within the lip to improve suppleness and fine lines at close to the same size. Augmentation adds volume, shape or definition and changes the proportion of the lip.
Not in a way you would describe as bigger. Some initial swelling makes them look fuller for a day or two, and the settled result is a smoother, better hydrated lip at close to the same size.
Not the ones in the skin above the lip, which sit outside it. Those respond to conservative anti-wrinkle treatment, a skin booster or resurfacing, and Dr Sateei will recommend the right route.
Noticeably, for the first 24 to 48 hours, even with a small treatment, and some bruising is common. Allow two weeks before an event rather than two days.
Yes, and it is often the better order. Filler cannot be un-injected but it can always be added to, and the result is reviewed once swelling settles at two weeks.
Generally six to twelve months, tending toward the shorter end, because lips move constantly and metabolise product faster than structural areas.
Lip hydration is often planned alongside these.
If your lips are dry, fine and lined rather than too small, hydration is probably the treatment you are looking for and it is a smaller one than lip filler. Working out which of the two you actually want is the point of the consultation. Dr Ellie Sateei sees patients at her London clinic.
Our London clinic is located at 91a New Cavendish Street, London, W1W 6XF
We serve patients from London, Kent and the home counties as well as from all over the world. Our London clinic sits in the heart of Marylebone, within easy reach of the West End by tube, while our Sevenoaks clinic in Ightham is moments from the M25 and M26 for patients across Kent.
