Jawline Enhancement

Q: Dr. Eppley, I am interested in jawline enhancement surgery doing a sliding genioplasty and jaw angle implants. Can the chin surgery be done at the same time as adding jaw angle implants? Would these custom implants be of a material that would be able to last a lifetime? I’m only 25 years old and have already gone through so much with my jaw and teeth that I wouldn’t want to go through with another surgery, but I am very unhappy with the way my face looks currently. I think that a sliding genioplasty with the jaw angle implants would be ideal because I agree that my chin looks rather long and I would rather adjust/fix it than add a chin implant. I know that this isn’t a consultation but what would be approximate cost be for these operations…10-12k or over 15k? I am currently covered under Tri-care but I know that these would be considered cosmetic and probably nothing would be covered with insurance.

A: In answer to your jawline enhancement surgery questions,

1) A sliding genioplasty and jaw angle implants can and should be done at the same time.

2) All facial implants are made of non-biodegradable silicone material which will last much longer than you and I will.

3) I thin the best approach in you would be a sliding genioplasty and vertical lengthening jaw angle implants. The most ideal approach for the implants is to have them custom made because you probably have some degree of asymmetry between your jaw angles given your prior surgery. But in the interest of cost, semi-custom vertical lengthening jaw angle implants can be used.

4) I will have my assistant pass along the exact cost of the surgery to you tomorrow.

5) Unfortunately your assumption is correct in that this would not be considered a medically necessity and would be viewed by TriCare as an elective cosmetic procedure.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana