It will almost always be clear to see if your filler has migrated beyond the lips. A plump upper lip and a lack of a definite boundary between the lip edge and the upper or lower region of the lip border are both visual signs of lip filler migration.
Migrated lip filler is visibly noticeable and usually presents as lumps, but can also appear as a puffy upper lip, lack of a defined border between lip edge and above and/or below the lip border – think duck lips. If you're prone to lip filler migration, you may be wondering why it keeps happening.
If you believe that your filler has migrated, then don't panic, as it can be treated. The beauty of modern-day filler is that it is semi-permanent, so over time your body will naturally break down and metabolise the substance.
Before you start overanalyzing your face, the biggest tipoff that your filler has migrated is that there's unnatural fullness in the area. "With lip filler, the upper lip border becomes less defined and a mound develops in the skin above the lip, causing the 'duck lip look,' says Dr. Nichols.
People think that they should wait until the filler dissolves and in reality, it takes an extremely long time. It can take two to three years and beyond.
Migrated lip filler can present as lumps, noticeable volume above the top lip, lack of a defined lip edge all over, and sometimes can cause discomfort.
In some cases, we recommend our patients massage their fillers following treatment to smooth them out below the skin; however, too much massage too soon may cause the filler to migrate slightly.
Will migrated filler go away on its own? In theory, yes, but the reality is a bit more complicated. When we dissolve fillers we inject an enzyme called hyaluronidase. Hyaluronidase is naturally occurring in your body and this is the reason that lip fillers will eventually dissolve on their own.
Dr. Frank says the best way to deal with migration is to dissolve the filler with hyaluronidase (an enzyme that breaks down hyaluronic acid gels). In just a few hours, hyaluronidase softens the filler and returns the lips to a more natural shape, projection, and size.
Even though the results of filler will be visible right away, migration can happen almost immediately, with a few days or weeks, or even up to years later in rare circumstances, depending on what the root cause of the issue is. “If overfilling is the culprit, it will be noticeable almost immediately,” says Dr. Horn.
Poor injection technique can lead to migration – the act of filler spreading to unintended locations – and the emergence of what has come to be known as “duck lips” or a “trout pout”.
So while the body naturally breaks them down over time, there is a way to speed up the process: Injections of hyaluronidase. Hyaluronidase is what the body produces naturally to break down fillers, so by injecting more, it allows the lips to regain natural shape quicker, usually going down within 3-4 days.
Calcium hydroxylapatite is biosynthetically produced, which means that no animals or animal products are used. This lowers your risk of an allergic reaction and no skin testing is required. This type of dermal filler is known to produce a very natural result, doesn't migrate and side effects are rare.
However, it must be stressed, however, that filler does not migrate from one area of the body to another. What being discussed on social media is simply so-called migration of a few millimeters within the same anatomical regions where it was injected.
There isn't any known evidence that routine kissing will cause more rapid breakdown of the product or move the filler. However, very heavy manipulation of the lips isn't a great idea either soon after filler injections.
Answer: HA filler migration
Less viscosity ha filler will spread and migrate more than high viscosity fillers! Kubederm voluma is the most cohesive filler and therefore the least likely to migrate!
In rare cases, facial fillers like Juvederm can migrate to another site of your face within a few days of your injections. This happens when the filler moves before it has fully bonded with your facial tissue.
Fortunately, dermal fillers work very quickly, and you won't have to wait twelve months to see the full benefits of your injections. That said, these injectable treatments take some time to integrate into your tissues, and it's normal for your dermal filler to take up to two weeks to fully settle into your face.
The filler can take several weeks to soften and settle into your skin. This means that patients won't see the ultimate results of their treatment immediately. Although individual results will vary, many people achieve the full effect within two weeks after receiving their injections.
Massage can encourage the filler to be broken up by the body more quickly. But in practice this still takes a long time (like weeks of daily vigorous massage) to improve the outcome. This may also spread the product over a larger area causing more problems.
It's important to note that lip filler migration can happen over the course of weeks, months, or even years. Some people end up experiencing it quite rarely, while it's a common occurrence for others.
Doing it safely and properly and giving it the appropriate amount of time to heal can also aid in avoiding lip filler migration (via L1P Aesthetics). If it has already occurred, it might be better to take action right away rather than wait for it to dissolve on its own because that could take a long time.
Calcium hydroxylapatite is biosynthetically produced, which means that no animals or animal products are used. This lowers your risk of an allergic reaction and no skin testing is required. This type of dermal filler is known to produce a very natural result, doesn't migrate and side effects are rare.
So while the body naturally breaks them down over time, there is a way to speed up the process: Injections of hyaluronidase. Hyaluronidase is what the body produces naturally to break down fillers, so by injecting more, it allows the lips to regain natural shape quicker, usually going down within 3-4 days.
Tijion Esho, founder of Esho Clinic and ESHO lip products, says true filler migration is actually quite rare. “The face has fixed facial compartments and filler can only move where there is adjacent space,” he says.