Which Is Better…Custom Facial Implants or Bimax Surgery?

Q: Dr. Eppley, I’m considering face implants with you but I also have thick skin, so not sure if this is the correct procedure for me, fellow researchers have said bimax and other bone cutting surgery’s are more effective in providing a non bloated face. These two people below with thick skin got implants placed and they look bloated instead of angular after, could it be a design issue?

A: In answer to your questions:

1) Let’s first get the concepts correct. A full bloated face is NEVER going to end up with a thin sculpted face…so that end goal should be eliminated as unrealistic. 

2) The better question is the how much improvement/slimming effect can be achieved which is a function of tissue stretch (implant augmentation) and tissue reduction. (defatting) The degree of facial change is going to be a function of these combined effects. In the thicker skinned patient both of these diametric tissue changes must be maximized.

3) While I have no idea as to why the implant was designed for the particular patient you have shown, it is an implant design that has its greatest effect in the chin area. The jaw angle portion is so small that it would not have much tissue stretching effect. (But this may be what the patient wanted) It is also unknown what facial defatting procedures were done, if any, for this patient.

4) Orthognathic surgery and custom facial implant augmentations are done for very different reasons. They are not comparative operations and thus their aesthetic effects are going to be different.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana