Transgender Facial Reshaping

Q: Dr. Eppley,I am a transgender woman who is curious about procedures to narrow the width of my overall face. My face height (from hairline to bottom of the chin) is long, which by measurement seems to be around the female average, but my head looks wide due to the disproportionate width. The primary culprits seem to be the lateral projection of my zygomatic arches as well as a wider than average skull (lateral projection above the ears).

My understanding of male vs. female cheekbones is that male cheekbones tend to have more lateral projection, while female cheekbones tend to have more anterior projection. Would lateral cheek bone reduction combined with implants to give more anterior projection be a good solution to feminize this part of the face? And could this be combined with a reduction of the temporal muscles above the ears to achieve the effect of a less-wide head?

A: While I have not seen pictures of your face, your overall supposition seems aesthetically accurate. Posterior temporal reduction, posterior zygomatic arch reduction and anterior zygomatic (cheek) augmentation all seem like the correction combination to achieve a more feminine facial shape.

I wiould need to see some pictures of your face to provide a more qualified opinion in that regard.

Dr. Barry Eppley
Indianapolis, Indiana