MY ALLODERM LIPI just had the AlloDerm done on March 17,'00. I only had my top lip done, as my bottom lip is pretty full to begin with. I certainly don't claim to be an expert, but I can tell about my personal experience. I made an appointment for a consultation with a plastic surgeon who I had heard good things about. I was interested in collagen injections. He was really informative and went over the many different options and products available today, and the pros and cons of each. I have also found a website that has a ton of info on lip enhancement at this site: Lip Enhancement and this doctor said very much the same things my doctor said to me. He told me that collagen was basically a waste of money and that, in his opinion, AlloDerm was the way to go for the longest lasting results. It is eventually reabsorbed into the body, but has the potential of some permanent results due to the way it is implanted and the fact that since it is human tissue the theory is that one's body might just leave it alone rather than reabsorbing it all. I was told the results would probably last a year or more. I went in on a Friday morning. He gave me several shots inside my upper lip to numb it. The Lidocaine that he numbed me with stung a little bit going in, but my lip (and only my lip) was numb quickly and I didn't even feel many of the shots. I was totally awake and alert throughout the procedure. Once my lip was numb he made a tiny incision on the inside of my lip near the corner of my mouth and inserted a piece of metal to make a "tunnel" for the AlloDerm implant. Once that was done, he pulled the implant through, stitched me up (tiny incisions on each end of the inside of my lip) gave me an icepack and sent me home. I drove myself home, felt just fine, my lip was starting to really swell. The entire procedure took only an hour and was totally painless other than the sting of the shots.  before & after it's the subtle differences...When the numbness started to wear off I was hurting and took a Darvocet that he had prescribed for me a few weeks before the procedure. He prescribed 5, I took only 2. Once that kicked in I wasn't in any pain. My lip swelled tremendously, I looked like Marge Simpson with this HUGE overbite look. I stayed in the house all weekend. I didn't have any bruising except for a little bit right in the middle of my lip itself. I am generally a fast healer and don't usually bruise very easily. By the second day I looked much less swollen, but still was not going outside. By the third day, Sunday, I ventured out to the grocery store. I felt very self conscious, but I really don't think anyone thought I looked freakish or anything. I went to work on Monday, no one said a word. I was still swollen and my lip sort of turned up. My kids had been at their dads all weekend, so they had not seen me yet. That night at dinner, my 7 yr old said "mom, your lip looks funny" then they all giggled for a while. I told them I had a fat lip. It gets more and more natural looking each day. My plastic surgeon told me it would take about 3 weeks for it to feel soft rather than kind of hard and rubbery. It has been 12 days and already feels pretty good. I think just in the past day or so I don't look like I have an overbite anymore. My lip is still thick looking when I smile, but that is diminishing too. So far I am just thrilled with the results. I will keep you posted on my progress, and let you know how long it lasts, etc. I searched and searched for information on lip enhancement and specifically AlloDerm and had almost no luck. Hope this helps. I will be happy to answer any questions that I can so Email me!
 Email Kris |
