Smoker's Lines & Lip Wrinkles

Know your options Smoker's Lines Consultations with Contour Clinics

At Contour Clinics, our qualified cosmetic doctors provide detailed consultations to discuss concerns related to lines and wrinkles around your mouth, commonly known as smoker’s lines or barcode lines. Your consultation involves a thorough assessment of your facial structure, muscle activity, skin condition, lip movements and overall facial balance.

Areas that may be discussed in your personalised consultation include:

Skin Volume Assessment: Evaluating areas of volume loss around your mouth and discussing cosmetic options to potentially improve skin fullness.
Skin Texture and Firmness: Examining skin quality, including thickness, texture and elasticity, and discussing tailored cosmetic approaches that may be suitable for your skin. Options that may be discussed include: CO2 laser, Morpheus8 radiofrequency skin needling, skin needling or PDO mono threads.
Facial Contouring and Balance: Considering facial harmony and overall aesthetic appearance in relation to lines around your mouth, including a review of suitable cosmetic approaches to enhance skin quality and smoothness.
Rejuvenating Approaches: Rejuran, containing salmon-derived DNA fragments, aims to gently support and improve skin thickness and texture around the mouth, potentially reducing the visibility of fine lines and wrinkles. Individual outcomes may vary, and suitability should be discussed during your consultation.

Your consultation will thoroughly cover realistic expectations, suitability of cosmetic options, and associated benefits or risks, helping you to make an informed decision.

What Causes Smoker's Lines or Lip Wrinkles?

Smoker’s lines are fine, vertical lines that etch the lips and extend from the lips to below the nose, and are generally more prevalent on the upper lips.

Fine lines around the lips and mouth are often referred to as ‘smoker’s lines’, as they’re a common result of the repetitive pouting formation of the mouth when smoking cigarettes – as well as the ageing effects of smoking itself. Smoking breaks down collagen production in the skin which in turn results in thinning skin and an increase in wrinkles.

Smoker’s lines they can also be caused by any repetitive bunching of the tissues around the mouth from overactivity of the muscle surrounding the mouth, called the orbicularis oris.

Loss of collagen through ageing is also potentially involved, which may cause lips to lose volume and therefore cause the surrounding area of skin to slacken and wrinkle. These lines occur as we age and as the lips start to naturally lose volume.

Other contributing factors may include:

Sun exposure
Repeated facial expressions such as pursing the lips
Playing musical instruments that require embouchure or a pursed mouth expression
Loss of subcutaneous fat of the face with age
Genetics
Ageing

Understanding the Anatomy The Role of the Orbicularis Oris Muscle in Smoker's Line Formation

Smoker’s lines commonly develop due to repetitive movements of the orbicularis oris muscle. This circular muscle encircles your mouth, playing a crucial role in actions like puckering, pursing, and speaking. With repeated contraction over time, the orbicularis oris muscle contributes to the formation of dynamic wrinkles, which are lines that appear during facial movement or expression.

As the skin naturally ages, elasticity decreases, collagen production declines, and these dynamic wrinkles can gradually become static lines. Unlike dynamic wrinkles, static lines remain visible even when the muscle is at rest, making them more noticeable around the mouth area.

Anatomically, the orbicularis oris muscle consists of both superficial and deeper muscle fibres arranged circularly around the mouth. Its contraction narrows or protrudes the lips, creating repetitive stress on the delicate surrounding skin. Over time, this repetitive muscular activity, combined with natural age-related changes in skin structure and elasticity, leads to the permanent etching of vertical lines into the skin around the lips.

Co2 Laser Resurfacing for Smoker's Lines

CO2 laser resurfacing is an effective option available for addressing smoker’s lines. It’s often recommended when skin texture changes and fine lines around the mouth are a concern – like deeper, more persistent vertical lip lines visible even at rest.

This advanced laser treatment works by delivering targeted micro-columns of energy deep into the skin to stimulate collagen regeneration and resurface the outer layers.

During a consultation, your doctor will assess your skin quality, lifestyle factors, and how these lines appear at rest and with movement. They’ll explain what outcomes may be realistic for your baseline, what downtime can vary by individual, aftercare details and the potential risks and limitations of resurfacing treatments.

EXPLORE CO2 LASER

The Contour Clinics Guarantee

At Contour Clinics, we’re committed to providing safe, ethical, and personalised cosmetic care. Our experienced doctors focus on delivering balanced, realistic consultations tailored specifically to your needs.

Book your complimentary consultation today to discuss suitability, cosmetic options and experience the patient-focused care that sets Contour Clinics apart. Individual results can vary, and your practitioner will guide you through what could be achievable for you.

Complimentary, obligation-free consultations with experienced doctors
Strict safety and hygiene protocols aligned with industry-leading standards
Advanced 3D photography to aid in a collaborative, comprehensive facial analysis
Products and technologies selected based on quality, safety, and efficacy
Medical-grade clinical environments thoughtfully designed for patient comfort and convenience

CO2 Laser | Fractional Laser Resurfacing

Fractional CO2 laser penetrates deep to rebuild collagen and restore skin—targeting wrinkles, scars, and pigmentation in one powerful session. Results keep improving for months.

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