How Can I Fix My Saggy Cheeks After A LeFort I Osteotomy?

Q: Dr. Eppley, In 2017 I had double jaw surgery, bottom was moved backwards and top moved forward. After time has passed my cheeks have gotten really saggy and my midface is unbalanced. I am wondering if maybe cheek inplants can sort of give me more fullness in the mid face and also add structure, to kind of lift my saggy cheeks.

A: One of the well known adverse effects of a LeFort osteotomy can be loss of cheek fullness and/or the development of excessive persistent fullness in the lower cheek area. (due to the wide subperiosteal tissue release needed to perform the procedure) Such effects can become more apparent also based on the type of upper jaw movement, particularly in larger forward advancements. Increasing the bony support of the cheekbones can help but the key to doing so is to get the right style and size of cheek implants in place. What you really lack is a combination of undereye and high cheekbone structural defieciency. This is where a custom infraorbital-malar cheek implant style works best. Standard cheek implants do not have the ability to provide this type of bony footprint coverage.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana