Cheilitis on the lips - causes of the disease, treatment methods

Why do lips dry out?

Dry lips occur due to several factors, such as:

• dry or windy weather;
• frequent stress;
• habit of licking lips;
• taking medications that affect the functioning of the salivary glands and muscles around the mouth;
• increased body temperature during illness;
• intoxication processes;
• allergic reaction to cosmetics;
• diabetes;
• kidney diseases;
• bad habits.

Lips often become dry in people who are on diets or follow a vegetarian diet. In such cases, the condition of the lips worsens due to a deficiency of fat-soluble vitamins, which are found in foods of animal origin.

Types of the disease, their symptoms

There are a large number of types of disease, each of which has its own symptoms. Cheilitis happens:

1. catarrhal, resulting from injury. Its characteristic symptoms are redness, peeling, swelling and soreness of the lips.
2. eczematous, developing due to the occurrence of eczematous processes. The reason is an allergy to a certain type of food, cosmetics (lipstick, cream).
3. glandular, associated with an abnormality of the salivary glands. It happens that cheilitis on the lips accompanies periodontal disease, lupus, etc. The lower lip often suffers and begins to peel.
4. meteorological. It is caused, as the name suggests, by weather conditions (high air humidity, strong wind, decreased or increased temperature, exposure to ultraviolet radiation, etc.).
5. exfoliative, characterized by a chronic course. It is divided into two forms - dry (the blood supply to the lips is disrupted and, as a result, dry scales are formed, which can be easily removed, but after a few days they appear again) and exudative (the border swells and becomes inflamed, crusts appear).
6. angular, called jam. Due to streptococci, inflammation begins in the corners of the lips. Vitamin deficiency and frequent licking of lips can also provoke it.
7. atopic, accompanying atopic dermatitis. The red border of the lips flakes and itches, the lips crack.
8. hypovitaminosis, which occurs due to a lack of B vitamins. Dryness and a pronounced burning sensation affect not only the lip area, but also the entire mucous membrane of the mouth, including the tongue. In this case, the mucous membrane turns red, and vertical cracks form in the area of ​​the red border.

Regardless of the type of cheilitis, common symptoms will be:

• peeling of the lips, observed both only near the border and over the entire surface;
• swelling and swelling, burning and itching in the lips, the appearance of cracks and crusts on them.

What should beautiful and healthy lips look like?

Beautiful and healthy lips are characterized by the following signs:

• evenness and smoothness of the skin;
• symmetry of the corners of the mouth;
• the presence of a pink or red tint to the lips;
• absence of peeling, cracks and purse-string wrinkles;
• convex volume of the labial border;
• absence of jams, pigmentation and pathological manifestations.

It is also important to pay attention to the presence of a hollow above the upper lip and a cupid's arch, which should be clearly defined.

How to get rid of unpleasant symptoms at home

It is not worth treating at home without seeing a doctor. However, there are ways that you can resort to to reduce discomfort:

• If your lips become inflamed due to the sun or cold, it is advisable that they are always covered with a protective layer of balm.
• For severe itching and burning, which occur in almost all forms of cheilitis, cold compresses will help. Before applying them, the skin is covered with a layer of balm so that the lips are treated simultaneously with the reduction of pain.
• If your lips are red and covered with cracks, sores or any other open wounds, you need to make sure that bacteria do not get into them. The surrounding skin and teeth should be treated with a cotton pad soaked in hydrogen peroxide or Miramistin. Special antiseptic ointments will have the best effect.
• If pain and itching are unbearable, painkillers can be used. Ointments with a cooling effect will have the same effect.

All methods of folk treatment for cheilitis will be useless if you resort to them thoughtlessly - without consulting a doctor. In most cases, inflammation, redness and itching of the lips are harmless. Such symptoms can go away even without therapy, but sometimes they indicate dangerous diseases, so medical help should not be neglected.

Top 10 tips on how to care for your lips

To keep your lips smooth and hydrated, follow these tips:

1. Regularly exfoliate the skin of your lips with special scrubs or a damp, thick towel.
2. Moisturize and nourish your lips with herbal balms; in the summer, you should additionally use products with SPF filters.
3. Maintain a drinking regime of drinking 2 liters of clean water per day.
4. Include in your diet foods high in omega-3 fatty acids (nuts, vegetable oils, vegetables and herbs, fatty fish).
5. Stop smoking, as tobacco smoke dries out the thinnest skin of the lips and leads to the formation of purse-string wrinkles.
6. Wash off makeup not with soap, but with two-phase makeup removers. In addition, while washing your face, it is good to do simple exercises to strengthen the orbicularis oris muscle. It is necessary to tightly compress and unclench your lips, and also pronounce the letters A, O, U, Y.
7. Take complexes containing vitamins A, C, E and group B.
8. Apply only high-quality cosmetics to your lips that do not contain camphor, phenol, aniline dyes and heavy metal salts.
9. It is recommended to add lip masks to winter care, or replace them by applying a restorative cream at night.
10. It is important to remember that cosmetic procedures play a huge role in maintaining external beauty. Therefore, do not forget about professional salon care for thin and delicate lip skin.

Cheilitis in children

Depending on the age of the child, he may experience a certain type of cheilitis.

Newborns suffer from a catarrhal disease caused by the prolonged presence of a pacifier or bottle in the mouth. Plus, saliva accumulates on the nipples of the lips, irritating sensitive baby skin.

If the disease is ignored, hoping that it will go away on its own, cheilitis will develop into an exfoliative form, accompanied by the formation of scales, which the child will not be able to remove himself (parents are highly discouraged from interfering in this process, since attempts to tear off the crusts can cause cracks, which will only aggravate the situation ).

Constant sucking of the mother's breast is an equally common cause of the development of the disease: during feeding, cracks form on the nipples, into which bacteria penetrate, which causes cheilitis.

Lip treatments in Moscow

Therefore, in situations where you need help in restoring or correcting your lips, it is better to contact Dr. Korchagina’s clinic.

We offer you only the best and most effective procedures:

• lip augmentation and correction with hyaluronic acid – a minimally invasive injection technology based on the introduction of fillers with hyaluronate; manipulation helps to correct the shape of the lips, as well as eliminate dryness, peeling and pallor of the lip border;
• Botox injections - botulinum toxin injections block muscle contractions, which allows you to keep the skin of the lips smooth without creases and wrinkles;
• lip contouring – subcutaneous injection of filler gels ensures enlargement, smoothing of the lip contour, elimination of purse-string wrinkles and folds in the corners of the mouth;
• permanent lip makeup – tattooing evens out color, makes lips voluminous and bright, eliminating congenital defects and minor imperfections.

The selection of the optimal method for lip restoration is carried out taking into account the individual characteristics and skin condition of the patient.

To make an appointment for a consultation and procedures at the Korchagina clinic, write to us on the website or call us by phone.

Moisturizing masks

You can cope with the problem of dry lips without visiting expensive beauty salons. Masks based on sour cream, kefir, gelatin and castor oil will help quickly soften the skin in the lip area at home in just 20 minutes.

Based on gelatin and kefir

Components:

• gelatin - 1 tsp;
• purified water - 20 ml;
• kefir - 1 tbsp. l.;
• oatmeal - 1 tsp.

Preparation:

1. Pour gelatin with water in a separate container and leave until it swells for 10 minutes.
2. Heat the gelatin mixture in a water bath until it becomes warm.
3. Mix kefir and oatmeal into the mixture to form a homogeneous mass.
4. Apply the mask to the lip area and leave until dry. You cannot talk during the procedure.
5. Rinse off with warm water.

With sour cream and castor oil

Sour cream must be chosen with a high fat content so that it is not too liquid.

Components:

• sour cream - 1 tsp;
• wheat germ oil - 3 drops;
• castor oil - 5 drops.

Preparation:

1. Mix all ingredients in one container until you get a homogeneous mixture.
2. Apply the product to the lips in an even layer and leave for 20 minutes.
3. Rinse off any remaining substances with warm water.

Lip massage after augmentation

It is strictly not recommended to massage your lips immediately after the procedure. This is fraught with infection. You must wait at least a day. It is better to slightly increase this period. However, in general, massage is beneficial. It will help the drug to be evenly distributed on the lips. As a result, the risk of unevenness will be significantly reduced. Additionally, this effect helps restore blood circulation. Overall, it will be possible to significantly shorten the healing period. It is better to massage after the swelling subsides. Until this moment, there is an active recovery period, and massage can cause harm.

Immediately after the procedure

In fact, the entire healing procedure can be divided into several stages. Initially, swelling appears. Then hematomas may occur. This reaction is considered normal. Additionally, there may be a feeling of tightness and fullness in the mouth area.

You should not evaluate the result immediately after the procedure. It will change somewhat in the future. To understand what your lips will look like, you need to wait a few days. In general, the result is visible within a week.

If bruises appear, there is also no need to panic. They occur if the cosmetologist touches a vessel. The situation is not dangerous. However, this may not look aesthetically pleasing. They will go away on their own within a few days.

On the first day after the procedure, you should not drink hot drinks. It is better to minimize the use of cosmetics. Additionally, you should not swim in the pool or overheat. If you follow your doctor's recommendations, the likelihood of developing side effects is minimal.

TOP 5 salon techniques

Women who are faced with dry lip skin sometimes do not know what to do with such a deficiency.

The most effective and fastest results are provided by cosmetic procedures. Here are the most popular ones:

Laser resurfacing

Used quite often. The essence of the method is to eliminate dead skin particles using a laser beam.

Sanding is not for everyone. If there are deep injuries, you will have to heal them first.

Non-injection hydration with hyaluronic acid

The surface of the lips is pre-cleaned. Then a concentrated composition of useful components and vitamins is applied.

Therapeutic substances penetrate deep into tissues using an electroporation apparatus.

The procedure provides complete hydration, improved color, and increased volume. The results obtained will last 2 – 4 months.

After this, you will need to repeat the manipulations. The impact of the unit is carried out under local anesthesia, so pain is not felt.

CONTRAINDICATIONS

1. women during pregnancy and breastfeeding;
2. people with malignant and benign tumors;
3. patients with diabetes mellitus;
4. patients with pathologies of the cardiovascular system.

Injection method

To replenish the lack of moisture, special fillers are used. They contain hyaluronic acid and lidocoine, which are necessary for painless injections. This procedure is called contour plastic surgery.

The result is not only hydration, but also enlargement of the lip area. This fact stops many.

But you need to understand that it is not necessary to greatly enlarge your lips, since an experienced doctor can introduce a small amount of fillers, so you will not notice much of a difference in size.

You can also perform lip biorevitalization. This is a procedure during which hyaluronic acid is injected into the skin layers.

In this case, the lips do not change in size, but enormous hydration occurs.

Vitamin complex

A mask enriched with vitamins is applied to the surface of the lips. The composition also includes other substances with beneficial properties:

• fixed oils;
• natural fruit acids;
• nutritional ingredients;
• beeswax.

A pronounced positive result will be visible after the first visit to the cosmetologist’s office.

Collagen mask

Suitable for quickly getting rid of flaking, giving softness and smoothness to the skin. The therapeutic effect of the mask lasts for 5 hours.

However, the procedure cannot be repeated too often. The ideal option would be sessions held twice a week.

Contraindications after lip augmentation

Lip contouring is considered a safe procedure. After it, you can almost immediately return to your normal lifestyle. The need for care and healing is still present. Although the doctor uses anesthesia, the procedure may be painful. Unpleasant sensations persist in the future. They can follow the patient for up to 3 days. In order not to worsen the condition, it is important to follow a number of recommendations. Thus, the following contraindications apply:

1. It is recommended not to eat food for 3 hours. The greatest number of restrictions concerns hot dishes. It is better not to eat them during the day. Otherwise, there is a risk of spoiling the result, as well as injuring the treated area. Therefore, it is recommended to give preference to products at room temperature. Hot and spicy dishes should be excluded from the menu. Eating such food is fraught with inflammation and swelling. It is advisable to cut the food into small pieces. It's better not to open your mouth wide. This increases soreness. On the first day after the procedure, it is highly recommended not to touch the treatment area. This is fraught with infection. It needs some time to heal.
2. While your lips are healing, it is better not to use decorative cosmetics. The use of lipsticks, lip pencils, balms, and glosses is prohibited. Their use is fraught with the occurrence of infections.
3. Overheating must be avoided. Otherwise, restructuring of hyaluronic acid is possible. It is also better not to use cooling compresses too often. Otherwise, the skin will become excessively dry and microcracks may appear.
4. It is recommended to limit physical activity. Also, doctors do not recommend showing facial activity.
5. Tanning is banned for one to two weeks. During this period, it is also not recommended to be in the open sun. The above procedures lead to excessive sweating, which increases the risk of infection. Additionally, the development of hyperpigmentation and swelling is possible. All warming procedures are also prohibited. They can lead to the breakdown of hyaluronic acid.

Question answer

In any case, if dryness or inflammation progresses, you need to go to the doctor, as you may be developing the pathology of cheilitis. In this case, ulcers, bumps, plaques, and cracks will appear. If wounds appear in the corners, then a fungal disease may develop. If you have tried various methods to combat dryness, but have not noticed any effect, then you also need to visit a doctor, since dryness in this area often occurs with psoriasis, pathologies of the endocrine system, and low hemoglobin levels.

In such a situation, it is useful to use beeswax, coconut oil, aloe vera, olives, and shea butter.

Today you can find many balms on sale. It is recommended to try different options to choose the right product. For example, balms from Vichy, LA ROCHE-POSAY, BIOTHERM are very popular. But there are many other worthy companies producing lip care products that show good results. Pay attention to glosses and balms that contain vitamins A and E.

Signs of deficiency

Both children and adults encounter unpleasant phenomena. Doctors call redness, soreness and peeling with one term - cheilitis.

Signs of this defect include:

• redness;
• burning sensation;
• cracks with edges turning into scales;
• tightness and swelling;
• discomfort;
• flaking crusts, bloody or white;
• tingling when drinking drinks and food;
• jams in corners;
• constant thirst.

It is important to figure out the cause of dry lip skin as quickly as possible. Perhaps the deficiency is caused by a common cold or improper daily care.