What Do I Need To Make My Face More Masculine In A Female-To-Male Transgender Change?

Q: Dr. Eppley, I am a transitioning female-to-male transgender individual and my goal is to create a more masculine appearance. In particular, I have a very round, feminine face. I believe chin implants and possible jaw implants/contouring would help a lot, but I am open to hear suggestions as well.  I’m very concerned about price given my student status.

A: When it comes to making a face more masculine, you are correct to first look at the jawline. That is one of the top areas in facial contouring in FTM transgender patients. your photos show a really soft jawline and that it makes priority number one from a surgical altering aspect. The rest of your face, as you have pointed out is round and feminine. From a both a cost and an effectiveness standpoint, I would focus on chin augmentation and buccal and submental fat reduction. In other words, a combined chin implant, submental liposuction and partial buccal lipectomies. This will help your jawline considerably and create improved definition sa shown in the computer imaging that I have done. The only debate about the chin procedure is whether it should be an implant or an osteotomy. Ideally, it should be an osteotomy because of your age  and the need for some vertical chin lengthening as well. But there is a cost difference between a chin implant and an osteotomy and that has to be factored into your treatment decision as well as you mentioned. Jaw angle implants are also an option but are far less important than chin augmentation in your case.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana