Can Lateral Chin Implants Be Made To An Existing Chin Implant?

Q: Dr. Eppley, I’m having an issue after a (second) chin implant revision, and I have an unusual question. Is it possible to design/ fashion a small “lateral” chin implant (similar to the “wing” of an extended chin implant) to support/ fill in an area of tissue loss that resulted when I recently had a medpor implant replaced with a silicone central anatomic implant?

I would compare what is happening to me as similar to what some people who have had a sliding genioplasty experience where they have a loss of tissue on the side of their chin that leaves a noticeable gap.

In my case, to make matters worse, the tissue loss is also on the side of my mandible that already has less bone/width than the other side, and it is positioned in just a way so that when I animate my face/ smile, etc… the skin pulls up and the muscle bends in a really unsightly way. It’s terrible and really bothers me.

HA filler is not hard like bone, so it just isn’t sufficient to hold the skin down when the muscle moves, and it doesn’t augment my jawline as well as an extended wing implant would.

The problem is, I’m a petite female, and so I don’t really want to go back to an implant style that has wings, as that would make my small chin look too boxy again (my first implant was this style).

If I could wave a magic wand, I would just add about a 2-3mm lateral extension piece to the current AC implant I have, but it just doesn’t seem to be possible to create such a tiny implant.

Are there solutions like this that exist, or would I need to have a custom implant made? What would something like that even cost (if you don’t mind sharing)?

Thank you so much for any advice you have!

A:I believe you are referring to a lateral chin implant which can be either custom made (see attached) or hand carved from a 2mm thick sheet of ePTFE. (Goretex)