Jawline Augmentation

Q: Dr. Eppley, I am interested in jaw augmentation surgery but I don’t know what type of procedures I need. I believe my face really suffers from a weak lower third and I need to reshape it somehow. Could you please advise me on what type of surgeries I should get? I have attached some pictures of my face for your review.

A: Based on your pictures our chin is short with a high jaw angle. This means that there overall jaw is short and total or more complete jaw augmentation would provide the best aesthetic result. There are several methods for jawline augmentation based on how the chin and jaw angle are treated. These include: 1) a chin sliding genioplasty and vertical lengthening jaw angle implants, 2) a square chin implant and vertical lengthening jaw angle implants, or 3) a custom one-piece jaw implant that wraps around the entire jaw made from a 3D CT scan. Each approach has it own advantages and disadvantages and, to some degree, slightly different aesthetic effects. This is where the role of computer imaging is critical to determine what degree of aesthetic change that you seek.  Stronger and more prominent jaw augmentation results are usually achieved by the use of a custom implant approach.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana