Can My Chin Be Reshaped After A Chin Osteotomy?

Q:  Dear Dr Eppley, I am an Asian female. I have had an advancement chin osteotomy, 4mm forward and 2mm downward. But the result makes me  have a long flat face with wider chin. As it’s not just the tip of the chin move forward but also the wide chin so it’s not good. I am guessing that the chin bone should be trimmed and I was wondering if it can be done in 2 to 3 weeks after the chin osteotomy has been done? It seems the swallow is not yet gone, is it good for immediate surgery again? Also I will do a facelift with fat transfer with other surgeon. I was wondering if I should wait and to have the chin bone trimming and facelift done at the same time, rather than do the bone trimming now?  If I can’t do them together, how long should I wait before each of the steps?  I look forward to hearing from you very soon.

A: Based on your description, it sounds like your chin osteotomy was just done. Your chin bone movement was very small and I doubt that amount of bone movement would make your chin ultimately look wider. I think what you are seeing is swelling, particularly if it has just been done in the past few weeks. You can not really judge the dimensional changes after a chin osteotomy, particularly width, for several months. I would advise waiting 3 months and then see what you think. There is no reason you can not do some chin reshaping if needed with a facelift and fat transfer later.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana