How Can I Get Rid Of My Chipmunk Cheeks?

Q: Dr. Eppley, I have cheek fat i would like to get rid of. I work out often and am around 15% body fat, but my face fat will not leave. I am tired of having chipmunk cheeks.

A:The first thing to recognize is the anatomy of your facial concerns. You have a long face with minimal cheekbone support. Much of your facial fullness concern lies below the facial equator line (see attached drawing) more in the perioral and lateral facial area. What lies north of the facial equator line is the effects of the buccal fat pad which it Is fairly minimal. Aggressive removal of your buccal fat pad is going to result in a long-term gaunt facial appearance which can be very hard to reverse. The upper mid facial problem is as much a lack of skeletal support as it is due to any fatty prominence. You can even argue that a small cheek augmentation with very modest buccal fat removal would be the more appropriate plan for what lies north of the facial equator line (see attached image). 

What lies south of the facial equalizer line is the subcutaneous fat layer of which microliposuction would be appropriate for treating  it from the corner of the mouth back to the jaw angle area.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Plastic Surgeon