A Review of Philtrum Reduction Surgery, from Scarring to Recovery

Hello.

This is Director Lee Won of 21 Plastic Surgery.

These days, as more and more people want a shorter midface and a more youthful-looking face,

philtrum reduction surgery has begun to establish itself as a trend.

As a result, people from their 20s to their 50s

are showing a lot of interest across a wide range of ages.

It seems that more than hearing, “You look pretty,” people now want to hear, “You take good care of yourself,” or “You look younger.”^^

Ideal proportions of the philtrum / lips / chin

In theory, the most ideal

philtrum length for women is 11–13 mm,

and for men it is around 13–15 mm,

and the ideal ratio between the philtrum and the chin

is about 1:2.

By nature, men’s philtrums

are often longer than women’s.

Also, as men age,

their philtrums can become up to 5 mm longer,

and women’s can become 3.5 mm longer.

On average, there is a statistic showing that they lengthen by about 0.5 mm every 10 years due to aging.

If the philtrum is long, not only does the whole face look longer,

but it is also easier to look older.

A noticeably long philtrum

can be improved through philtrum reduction surgery,

and depending on whether the philtrum is long by nature, lengthened by aging, or lengthened after orthodontic treatment or double-jaw surgery,

the procedure can be performed with an appropriate method.

So today, using a real patient case,

we will look at philtrum reduction,

a topic many people ask about and are curious about.^^

Front / side view before surgery

This is the appearance before surgery.

From the front and side, the philtrum looked long,

giving a plain appearance and making the midface look even longer.

Since the patient also considered the long philtrum a complex,

we performed philtrum reduction along the lower border line of the nostrils

so that the philtrum and lower face would be in a harmonious 1:2 ratio after surgery.

The key to this surgery is

to design the incision so that it is not noticeable,

while improving the facial proportions at the same time,

without being excessive.

So, considering the patient’s upper lip and smile,

we made subtle adjustments to the preoperative design.

Front / side view one week later

This is how it looked one week after surgery.

Some bruising and swelling remained,

but compared to before surgery, the philtrum length had shortened,

and the upper lip had become naturally fuller,

making the face look much more lively and defined than before.^^

Front / side view after 3 months

The time when recovery is considered complete after philtrum reduction surgery

is after 3 months.

When we checked the patient’s appearance,

the surgical scar was almost unnoticeable,

and we could confirm that the lips looked more voluminous

and the proportions of the nose, lips, and chin were harmonious.

Front / side view after 10 months

Lastly, this is the patient after 10 months.

Although a lot of time has passed, it can be seen that there is less sagging

and the result has been maintained.

However, when looking at the results after surgery,

for some people the philtrum has clearly been reduced,

while for others the degree of reduction is minimal.

Why do the changes in philtrum length differ

even when the same surgery is performed?

The reason is

that the surgery was planned to match the patient’s overall face.

Before surgery / 1 week later / 3 months later / 10 months later

The most important thing in philtrum reduction surgery is

that simply reducing the philtrum length as much as possible

does not necessarily make it better.

You may think a short philtrum looks cute,

but if it is too short relative to the facial proportions,

it can make the face look puffy (?)

So before philtrum reduction surgery,

through sufficient consultation,

we consider everything such as the patient’s face shape, nose position, and chin shape

and perform the optimal design.

That is why differences appear in the degree of philtrum reduction.^^

So far, I have given a brief explanation of philtrum reduction surgery.

I’m not sure whether this has resolved many of your questions,

but I hope this post has been helpful in some small way.^^

Thank you.

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