What is genioplasty surgery?
The patients are advised to stay on a soft diet and to rinse frequently with saline solution until the first postoperative visit.
Genioplasty is a form of cosmetic surgery to change the size, shape or positioning of the chin. Historically, various materials have been used to change the appearance of the chin, including paraffin and ivory. Silicone polytetrafluoroethylene and polyester mesh implants are popular today. An implant can also be harvested from the patient’s own body. Such implants are called “autografts” and may include tissue from the patient’s rib cage, hip bone, and nose.
Who is a candidate for genioplasty surgery?
Patients who are not satisfied with the appearance of their chin may seek genioplasty. The candidates for the surgery include those with the following problems:
- Overly large or small chin
- Protruding chin
- Receding chin
- Misaligned chin
- As a part of other cosmetic surgeries
What are the types of genioplasty?
There are three main types of genioplasty, sliding genioplasty, alloplastic augmentation, and mentum reduction.
Sliding genioplasty
- The sliding genioplasty can be done in inpatient or outpatient settings.
- General anesthesia is usually preferred.
- The surgeon pulls down the patient’s lower lip to make cuts below the teeth of the lower jaw. This gives the surgeon access to the chin bone.
- Cuts are made on the chin bone to align it for the desired changes.
- The aligned bones are then fixed with screws and metal plates to ensure they stay in the desired position.
- The surgeon will close the surgical cuts in layers to minimize and camouflage scarring. Finally, dressing is done.
- The duration of the procedure ranges from 15 minutes to two hours.
Alloplastic augmentation
- In this procedure, the surgeon changes the appearance of the chin by attaching implants to the patient’s chin bone.
- The surgeon will access the chin by making cuts below the chin or inside the mouth of the patient.
- They will insert the implant through the cut and attach it to the chin.
- Finally, cuts are stitched and the wound dressed.
- The procedure takes around 15 minutes to complete.
Mentum reduction
- The purpose of the surgery is to achieve a reduction of a prominent chin.
- Unlike sliding genioplasty, instead of advancing the lower part of the chin bone, the surgeon recedes and secures it.
- The procedure can be done by making cuts below the chin or inside the mouth.
- The reduction of the lower border of the jawbone may also be done.
How long does genioplasty take to heal?
The patients are advised to stay on a soft diet and to rinse frequently with saline solution until the first postoperative visit. Follow-up visits are scheduled with the patient on the seventh and 14th postoperative days. Because bone is operated on in genioplasty, complete healing takes at least 6-8 weeks. The time to heal depends on these factors:
- General health of the patient
- Type of the procedure
- Presence of complications
- Extent of surgical changes
Is genioplasty safe?
Genioplasty is a commonly performed surgical procedure. Although genioplasty has minimal chances of complications, it is associated with the following risks:
- Infection
- Bleeding
- Pain
- Nerve injury
- Bone loss or displacement
- Under correction
- Overcorrection
- Swelling
- Tooth damage
- Allergy to implant material
- Implant displacement
- Lip drop
- Scarring
- Healing delay or failure