Chin Implant

Q: Dr. Eppley, After doing research on real self and looking at my own face, I’ve very open to anything you suggest that I have done! You responded to my question in detail on real self several days back which I really appreciated. The main procedures I would like to take a look into having done has to do with my chin, so possibly a chin implant…fat removal underneath the chin/neck (This is one thing I feel like I’m a great candidate for and really want done), and buccal fat pad removal in the cheeks because I have always noticed I have pretty thick cheeks. I do realize sometimes buccal fat removal isn’t possible based around if the cheek has fat that can be removed or if it is just the way it is genetically. My chin also points slightly to the left and I’m not sure if chin implants can fix that? Like I said I’m very open here! Also my whole life I’ve been able to give myself what looks like a facelift just by “flexing/pulling” back the muscles and skin on my face. Everyone who I’ve showed which has been a lot of people, always say they’ve never seen someone who can do it. Have you ever seen this before and what does it mean? In all the side by side pictures attached, on the left side of every pic is my face totally relaxed. And on the right is me “pulling my face back”. I’ve notice it makes all my facial features stand out more but the one thing I don’t like is it also raises my forehead line which makes my forehead look larger. 

A: Thanks for your inquiry and sending your pictures. What happens when you pull the skin back is that you ‘skeletonize’ your face. The skin is tighter and the skeletal highlights (brow bone, cheeks, chin and jaw angles) become more prominent. That is why you like your face better this way. To try and replicate some of that effect you have to do a combination of skeletal augmentation and facial defatting. You will never replicate that loo surgically or naturally on its own but there are several procedures that will help. Chin implant augmentation with buccal lipectomy and neck liposuction are good selections. I would also add that small cheek implants can also help sculpt the midface better and are a complement to that of the buccal lipectomy. You natural chin/jaw asymmetry poses an issue for a standard chin implant as this really requires a custom chin implant to ideally correct but that will drive up the cost of surgery. The most economic approach would be to modify a standard chin implant (reduce the left side and position the right side of the implant lower) and hope for better albeit not perfect symmetry.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana