As I’ve gotten older (I’m 50 and female)

Question:
As I’ve gotten older (I’m 50 and female), my face has started sagging in all the usual places: cheeks, eyes, forehead, etc. The worst part of it, though, is my chin. The outer edges have sagged, leaving the middle looking large and square. I’d like to fill in the edges so the middle doesn’t look so bad. Would a chin implant be effective in pushing out the sides of my chin to reduce the sagging?

Answer:
There are many different chin implants that can be used to help shape the chin and jaw line. In your situation it sounds as if you are seeing your jowls drooping so that your jawline and lower face has become less well defined. A temporary yet effective solution to this problem is addition of dermal fillers such as Perlane, Juvederm, Restylane, or Radiesse to the grooves along the sides of your chin to augment those areas. A facelift is really designed to elevate your jowls but, clearly, this is more of a commitment. I often times use chin implants to enhance the chin and jaw line in conjunction with a facelift in those individuals with jowling and a weak chin.

The recovery for a chin implant is about a week to 10 days. Some swelling may remain for a few weeks but, this is not very noticeable. However, after reading your comments and concerns, I would absolutely elect to go with the rhinoplasty. Although the final results of a rhinoplasty may not be realized until a year after the surgery, 85% of the swelling will resolve in the first three weeks, and 90% of the swelling will dissipate within 6 weeks. Adding a chin implant to your face is only a good idea if your face needs chin augmentation and, perhaps, not such a great idea if you are trying to compensate for a very large nose.

Posted by Dr. Philip Schoenfeld