How Can I Get A More Well-Defined Jawline?

Q: Dr. Eppley, I am a 32 year-old male and I would like a well-defined jawline. I have attached some pictures for your thoughts.

A: Thank you for your inquiry. When it comes to improving the 'jawline' that could mean various things to different people. Fundamentally it comes down to whether one wants the front of their jawline (chin), the back of their jawline (jaw angles) or both improved. Those distinctions are obviously important as they involve different procedures.

In looking at your photos, an obvious horizontal chin deficiency exists. That could be significantly improved by either a chin implant or a sliding genioplasty. There are advantages and disadvantages to either approach and, based on what I see so far, I would lean towards a sliding genioplasty which would advance your chin up to 12mms but would also narrow it a bit in the frontal view which may be aesthetically advantageous for you. I have attached some prediction imaging of that potential result from the side view. It is not clear, based on just one photo, that augmentation of your jaw angles would help improve your jawline. I have done some imaging on this grainy frntal photo but it is questionably helpful. Better photos would ultimately be needed to clarify this issue.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana