Long-term analysis of surgical correction of the senile upper lip.

Holden, Paul K; Sufyan, Ahmed S; Perkins, Stephen W

OBJECTIVE A quantitative comparison of immediate and long-term results of surgical correction of the senile upper lip using lip advancement and lip lift. METHODS Retrospective review of 30 patients who underwent senile upper lip repair, including lip advancement or lip lift. Digital image analysis was used to standardize each patient's preoperative and postoperative photographs for accurate, objective comparison. RESULTS Lip lift and lip advancement achieve significant improvement in the appearance of the senile upper lip (P < .001). This improvement is sustained during many years (mean, 5 y; P < .001). Using repeated measures analysis of variance, no significant difference was found in the operative group compared with the control group when examining age-related change. CONCLUSION Lip advancement and lip lift can restore the senile upper lip to a more youthful and natural appearance with sustained long-term benefits.