Lip Swelling: Causes

What causes lip swelling?

Lip swelling can be caused by infection, allergies, or trauma of the lip tissues. Lip swelling can be due to relatively mild conditions, such as sunburn, or serious or life-threatening conditions, such as an anaphylactic reaction, which should be immediately evaluated in an emergency setting.

Infectious causes of lip swelling

Lip swelling can be due to a variety of infections including:

• Bacterial, viral or fungal infection

• Cellulitis (bacterial skin infection)

• Herpes simplex virus infection

Allergic causes of lip swelling

Lip swelling is commonly due to mild to serious allergic reactions including:

• Drug allergy, such as a penicillin or codeine allergy

• Food allergy

• Hay fever or allergic reaction from animal dander, dust, cosmetics or pollen

• Insect bite allergy, such as from a bee sting

Traumatic causes of lip swelling

Lip swelling can arise from irritating substances, injury or trauma, such as:

• Contact with an irritant (contact dermatitis)

• Dental appliances

• Hot and spicy food

• Laceration or blunt trauma of the lip

• Oral surgery

• Severe sunburn

• Surgery on the lip

Other causes of lip swelling

Lip swelling can be due to various other conditions including:

• Blood transfusion reaction

• Cheilitis (rare inflammatory disorder of the lower lip)

• Fluid retention, such as can occur during pregnancy

• Hereditary angioedema (serious genetic disorder that causes periodic swelling of the throat and other areas)

• Lip cancer (skin cancer)

• Melkersson-Rosenthal syndrome (rare neurological disorder)

• Obesity

• Organ failure, such as heart, liver or kidney failure

• Preeclampsia (serious condition of pregnancy marked by swelling, high blood pressure, and protein in the urine)

• Severe malnutrition

Questions for diagnosing the cause of lip swelling

To help diagnose the underlying cause of lip swelling, your licensed health care practitioner will ask you several questions related to your symptoms. Questions asked during your examination generally include:

• When did the lip swelling start?

• How long has the lip swelling lasted? Does it come and go?

• Did you eat any foods or have contact with any unusual substances before the swelling started (for example, seafood, shellfish, latex, or an insect bite)?

• Have you had any recent infections or injuries to the mouth or lips?

• Do you have any pain or other symptoms?

What are the potential complications of lip swelling?

Complications associated with swollen lips can be progressive and vary depending on the underlying cause. Because lip swelling can be due to serious diseases, failure to seek treatment can result in complications and permanent damage. It is important to contact your health care provider when you experience persistent swelling, discoloration, or other unusual symptoms related to your lips. Once the underlying cause is diagnosed, following the treatment plan you and your health care professional design specifically for you can help reduce any potential complications including:

• Deformity

• Difficulty breathing or respiratory arrest from anaphylactic shock

• Skin or other tissue removal

• Spread of infection to other parts of the body, including the blood