Vermillion Border Lip Outline Treatment Using V Soft Lift Smooth PDO Threads
Medically reviewed by: Elizabeth Williams RN
Updated: 3/2/2025
Back in the day, rejuvenation procedures didn’t come in a lot of flavors – basically, you were getting a surgical lift. An incision would be made directly underneath the nose, allowing the surgeon to remove a strip of one’s facial tissue, so that a 3–5-millimeter lift of the lip could be sutured into place to restore a youthful, elevated smile.
While noninvasive options were being developed, what they really needed to be perfect was a smooth, strong thread that would allow doctors to simply tighten your lips, rather than cutting and repositioning them. In the late 1990s PDO thread for lips was put to the task and the results were nothing short of amazing – a noninvasive lip thread lift that would become known and loved around the world!
Today we’re going to tell you a little about these fantastic threads. We’ll talk about the Vermillion Lip Border Outline treatment, give you a little history on PDO threads and their development, and tell you about modern PDO thread for lifts such as VSoft Lift and how they work.
If you’re considering a non-invasive rejuvenation with PDO threads involved, then read on and find out what you need to know. We’ll give you a hint – there’s a reason these wonder threads have been a medical staple for over 40 years!
Learn more about the before and after for the lip border treatment
It’s interesting to note, however, that when it comes to the lips, even the terminology that is used is beautiful and shows how much the world reveres the most intimate and expressive parts of our faces.
When you hear the term ‘Vermillion Border’1, this just refers to the red margins of your upper and lower lip, and it’s often a term used with another lovely one called ‘Cupid’s bow’, which simply defines the top portion of your lip that ideally makes a natural, perfect bow shape.
Now that you know what the Vermillion Border is, what is a Vermillion Border Lip Outline treatment? Well, this is simply a popular non-surgical procedure that is used to rejuvenate your lips to give them the tightness and sure contours that they had in youth.
It’s not a ‘plumping’ treatment like lip fillers. With a VBLO, your doctor takes small and dissolvable PDO thread for lips and uses them to smooth and tighten up existing lines. This results in finer definition and enhancement of your Cupid’s bow just below your nose and helps to restore the youthful curves in both the upper and lower lip.
The results can be breathtaking and when you consider that 15 minutes of the 30 – 35 minute procedure is simply waiting for the anesthesia to work its magic, it’s easy to understand why the Vermillion Border Lip Outline treatment is well-known and loved across the world.
While we tend to take technology for granted these days, innovations such as lightweight, durable suturing threads came about out of definite necessity and the ‘threads of yesteryear’ simply weren’t refined enough for something as delicate and effective as a Vermillion Border Lip Outline treatment.
To understand a little about the love and heavy refinement that produced top-notch modern products such as Vsoft LIFT PDO threads, we need to take a look at their humble origins back in the 90’s – which were simply called ‘contour threads’2.
When the worst happens, you want a doctor that’s not only well-educated, but innovative enough to get creative when the technology of the time simply wasn’t up to the task at hand. One such doctor is a plastic surgeon by the name of Gregory Ruff, who was tasked with helping the victim of a car accident who had sustained a crushed cheek.
It was definitely a nightmare scenario, but the clever doctor had an idea and it worked like a charm. By cutting notches by hand in surgical sutures of the day to create one-directional barbs, he was able to improve their hold, allowing him to craftily suture them into place and use them much like a ‘sling’ to move the patient’s cheek back into a proper position to heal.
He was pleased enough with the results that he used his makeshift threads for a number of other procedures before deciding that they would be perfect for cosmetic, non-invasive lifts, and by 2004 the clear, specially-barded sutures hit the market as ‘Contour threads’.
Dr. Ruff wasn’t the only one interested in developing a non-invasive lift and if we travel back in time to 1999, a Doctor by the name of Marlen Sulamanidze was about to develop some innovative threads of his own. Dr. Sulamanidze’s new sutures were marketed as ‘Aptos threads’, combining the words ‘against’ with ‘ptosis’, which was a fancy medical term for ‘sagging’.
What set this doctor’s threads apart from Contour threads was a little bit of tweaking to their design. Instead of a one-directional barb, Aptos threads were bidirectional and also blue, instead of being transparent.
They were popular but both Contour and Aptos threads had their limitations. While they could indeed be used for a noninvasive lip thread lift, these sutures could not be naturally absorbed by the human body, and they were difficult to put into place. This meant that there was a possibility of unsightly ‘skin bunching’ and sometimes they would even protrude.
The procedure for the lift was sound and the sutures being used were clever, but they just weren’t ideal until surgeons in Korea had a real game-changer of an idea – why not use PDO threads for the lifts?
The most genius innovations often employ a solution that was hiding right under our noses the whole time and a material called polydioxanone3 is a great example of this. Developed in 1982, this mono-filament suture was both synthetic and the FIRST fully-absorbable suture around!
Not only did it dissolve, but the thin monofilament was easier to put into place, minimized the chances of tissue reactivity, and significantly lowered the chances of infection. Now, when we say it’s absorbable, we really mean it – these sutures naturally dissolve within 4 to 6 months, courtesy of your own immune system.
It gets even better – these sutures help to stimulate the production of collagen, thickening the skin so that it heals firmly and smoothly, providing a lift that can last as long as 12 – 15 months. All this from a 30-minute procedure?
Before it had been put to this use, Korean plastic surgeons realized that this material –already being used by Trauma, Cardiothoracic, and OB-GYN doctors for well-nigh 30 years — was the final piece of the puzzle for the perfect, non-invasive, and long-lasting lift.
How successful was it? You can tell by the name that this procedure picked up in Korea that spread around the world.
They called it ‘the Sugar Lift’.
Fast-forwarding from our plastic surgery history lesson into today we have modern PDO threads, such as the Vsoft LIFT, which deliver a lightweight, durable performance that makes our modern medical miracles such as noninvasive lip lifts possible. That’s not all that they are used for, however, as these threads are also employed for:
The monofilament material polydioxanone is small enough that it allows for careful, focused sizing, making it ideal for various useful applications.
‘Size matters’, as they say, and we’ll prove it in the case of polydioxanone threading application. Here’s a quick look at what a difference of a few millimeters and lightweight grams can make:
A PDO thread lip lift is a great anti-aging procedure that is minimally invasive and produces amazing results. Without having to undergo surgery — and the long recovery time associated with it — you can get the shape of the lips that you’re looking for.
As we age, our skin begins to sag, and a lot of signs of aging appear on our face. With a PDO thread lip lift, you can achieve the “cupid’s bow” that everyone desires, with relatively little downtime and recovery time, and great results that last a while.
Today, there are many lip treatments that serve as viable alternatives to surgery. Two of the most popular are PDO threads and lip fillers.
While each of these procedures can give you great results, they do so in much different ways — and are used for different purposes.
Lip fillers are injectables that are meant to add volume to your lips. They get you a “plumper” look to your lips, which is something that many people desire if they have thin lips.
PDO threads, by contrast, are meant to help with contouring and tightening of the skin near your lips, which helps you to get a more youthful look. Since nothing is being injected into your skin with PDO threads, they often result in a much more natural look than lip fillers or other alternatives.
| Feature | PDO Threads | Lip Fillers | Surgical Lip Lift |
|---|---|---|---|
| Invasiveness | Minimally invasive | Minimally invasive | Highly invasive |
| Longevity | 12-18 months | 6-12 months | Permanent |
| Recovery Time | 1-2 days | Minimal | Weeks |
| Cost Range | $500 – $1,500 | $400 – $2,000 | $3,000 – $10,000 |
Many people would be good candidates for PDO lip threads. However, the most ideal candidates are those who might be experiencing early signs of aging in their face, or who are beginning to show signs of aging that are mild.
This might include people who are experiencing skin laxity on a mild to moderate basis and have wrinkles and/or fine lines appearing around their mouth, chin and nose.
If the skin laxity or aging effects are severe — for instance, if the skin has sagged quite significantly — then PDO threads might not be the best option for correcting it.
PDO lip threads are not permanent procedures, but that’s actually not a bad thing at all. The procedure can be repeated at any time to achieve your desired results, which allows your practitioner to cater the procedure to your specific skin situation at the time of the procedure.
How long the results will last depends on a number of factors, including your age, condition of your skin and skin type, your body’s metabolism and more. That being said, PDO lip threads generally last at least 18 months, though they can also last much longer.
Before your practitioner inserts the PDO threads into your face, they will numb the area using local numbing agents. Then, they will insert the PDO threads using a preloaded cannula, in a way that’s very similar to how an IV line is inserted.
They will then manipulate the threads into place to achieve the results that you are looking for. You shouldn’t feel any pain while this is happening, though you may experience slight tugging and/or pressure.
Once the PDO threads are in place, the practitioner will snip off the ends and ensure symmetry.
Immediately following the procedure, you will be able to resume a majority of your daily activities. Your practitioner will advise you to avoid certain things for a few weeks, including deep facial cleansing or massages, intense workouts and taking certain medications.
You may experience some slight bruising and/or swelling in your face following the procedure, though that will usually solve itself within about a week. You can use certain over-the-counter medications and ice to help alleviate those issues.
The first step of any PDO thread procedure is a consultation with your provider. You will discuss with them what it is you are hoping to achieve, and the provider will also examine your skin so they can give you their best recommendation.
Once a plan has been agreed upon, they will numb the treatment area and insert the PDO threads, as described above. Barbs located on the PDO threads themselves will grip onto parts of your skin so that your provider can then lift up parts of your skin to give you the results you desire.
After the procedure is over — which usually takes less than an hour — you will be able to walk out of the office and resume most of your day-to-day activities. It’s important that you follow the after-care instructions your provider gives you, as that gives you the best chance to get the optimal results.
| Step | Description |
|---|---|
| Consultation | Discuss goals and determine suitability for PDO lip threads |
| Preparation | Avoid alcohol, tobacco, and certain medications before the procedure |
| Anesthesia | Local numbing agent applied to treatment area |
| Thread Insertion | PDO threads inserted using a cannula and adjusted for lift |
| Final Adjustments | Excess thread trimmed, symmetry checked |
| Recovery | Minimal downtime; avoid intense workouts and facial massage |
Before you have a lip lift treatment, there are a few steps you should take in preparation.
Generally speaking, you should avoid consuming any beverages and food and taking certain medications that could increase your risk of bruising or bleeding. It’s also recommended to stop using tobacco and alcohol for a week or so before your procedure, as both of those can stunt the typical healing process.
Learn more about what to avoid after a PDO Threads procedure
You should also discuss which medications, if any, you take on a regular basis with your provider so they can advise whether you should stop taking them or not. It’s also a good idea to prepare for potential swelling in your face in the days after your procedure, such as having foods on hand that are soft.
PDO threads can absolutely be used in combination with other lip rejuvenation procedures. One of the most common is to have a PDO lip lift along with dermal fillers.
What this does is make your lips fuller and plumper, while also providing extra tightness and contour around the lips.
You can also have a PDO threads lip procedure in combination with other options such as microneedling and PRP treatments to achieve different outcomes.
Like other PDO threads procedures, there risks and side effects of a PDO lip thread procedure are very minimal.
Any time that something foreign is being inserted into your body, there’s a chance of infection. However, if the office is sterile and your provider is experienced, this should not happen.
There’s also a chance of excessive bleeding, scarring, asymmetry and hematoma to occur. Again, though, an experienced provider using high-quality PDO threads should reduce the real risks of this occurring.
The most common side effects of PDO lip threads is minor bruising and swelling. This should resolve itself within about a week, though, and can be helped along through the use of ice.
The cost of PDO lip threads depends a lot on your location. The typical range for these procedures is between $500 and $1,500, but could be more expensive if you live in a higher-cost area.
The cost of a PDO lip threads procedure also depends on the extent of the procedure itself and what you need to get done. This is why the more complex procedures could cost a few thousand dollars.
In general, PDO lip threads are very comparable to the cost of dermal fillers. Again, though, keep in mind that those procedures produce different types of results.
Plastic surgery, meanwhile, is much more expensive. Again, depending on what you are getting done, surgical procedures could cost $3,000 or more.
The perfect balance of form and function required for procedures such as the Vermillion Border Lip Outline treatment would simply not be viable without the refined addition of lightweight, versatile polydioxanone monofilament threads.
It’s a ‘wonder thread’ when you really think about it and now that you know that it’s made amazing procedures not only possible but commonplace, then why not go with the best?
Visit VSOFT today at https://vsoftthreads.com/product/smooth/ and download our free doctor’s brochure to learn more about this quality PDO thread for lifts.
It’s an amazing time to live in, especially with products such as Vsoft LIFT making cosmetic enhancement accessible to everyone who likes the idea of turning back the clock and enjoying the natural beauty of youth for just a little bit longer – and really… who doesn’t want THAT?
Please be aware that you are about to access the international website for V Soft Lift PDO Threads. It’s essential to note that this site has not undergone evaluation by the USA FDA.
The information provided on this platform may discuss regulatory clearances in countries outside the United States. Consequently, it might include indications and uses that extend beyond the FDA-cleared labeling for the product.
It’s important to emphasize that the details presented on this website are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. This information should not be seen as a replacement for advice from a qualified physician or healthcare professional.
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