Can You Tell Me What Is Wrong With My Chin One Month After A Bony Genioplasty?

Q: Dr. Eppley, I have had a genioplasty 4 weeks ago but something does not feel right. My chin feels more to my left. 

I feel there is more tension to my left, slight pain, there’s still numbing and awkward popping sounds come from my left. Not the popping noise I sometimes get from tmj but tiny popping sounds as if bubbles are bursting. They occur when my mouth is closed and if I clench my teeth. 

The left side has all these discomforts yet it also looks like the least advanced. I still look soft and round on that side. I have two different jaws (one side is always slightly longer than the other). 

My lips dont feel supported anymore as they did when I came out of surgery. Its naturally sits open. It nows feels back to its recessed self. I feel a strain, would I need botox there? 

I have attached pictures and would like to know your opinions. Do you think there could have been a better way of cutting my chin? 

I would be very grateful for your opinion. Currently my surgeon is not being 100% honest with me and believes he did a great job although I have suspicion he is turning a blind eye. 

A: Since this is early in your recovery process and you are still under active care by another surgeon, I do not provide commentary on a procedure in which all I have is ‘one side of the story’. But what I would tell any patient or surgeon that has concerns about a chin implant position or a chin osteotomy, no matter when it is in the recovery process, is get a 3D CT scan or cone beam scan of the chin. That will provide exact visual insight into what was done. Looking from the outside is just guessing and open to various interpretations of what may lie underneath.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana