What Should I Replace My Submalar Cheek Implants With To Give My Face A More Masculine Angular Look?

Q: Dr. Eppley, I’m a 45 year old male that had submalar implants placed about eight years ago in hopes to give my face a more masculine angular look and help my nasolabial fold area. I feel they are preventing me from smiling fully and created an “overfilled”and feminine look. I think I’d like to remove them and change to something more lateral like a malar implant . I do not want the scars of a mid facelift but would like to improve the nasolabial area in another way with implants if possible.

A: You have unfortunately discovered that most standard cheek implants (technically all of them) feminize the male face. Men need a high horizontal line of augmentation along the cheekbone and zygomatic arch, not the anterior fullness created by current malar and submalar implants. The only question is whether you want to modify a standard malar implant or use a semi-custom vs custom cheek implant approach to replace your existing cheek implants. Such cheek implant replacements are not going to reduce the depth of the nasolabial folds which require a bone-based implant underneath them to help in that regard.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana