Will Vertical Jawline Lengthening Help Improve The Appearance Of My Short Chubby Face?

Q: Dr. Eppley, I’m a 32 year old female and I have a short and chubby face. I’m considering a custom jaw implant primarily for vertical face lengthening but also a defined jaw line. Attached is a pic of my profile and another pic of someone with the jaw appearance I would like. I would appreciate your expert opinion. Thank you! 

A: Thank you for your inquiry and sending your pictures. You are spot on with your diagnosis of a vertically short lower face. While your thicker facial tissues are never going to be as defined as the ideal picture you have shown no matter what you do, vertical jawline lengthening with facial defatting (buccal lipectomies and perioral liposuction) will produce the most effective result in that regard. Elongating the skeletal structure of the lower face and defatting what lies above it is the most you can anatomically change. (technically you can also do high horizontal cheek-arch augmentation as well to create a skeletal line above it)

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana