Would a Chin Implant by Itself Lengthen a Round Face?

There are two basic schools of thought regarding chin augmentation surgery (genioplasty). One involves cutting the jaw bone, shifting the bone fragments, possibly adding something between the bone fragments to lengthen the chin and securing the bones with plates and/or screws.  The other consists of adding a chin prosthesis on top of the bone.  The first is a bigger surgery with more pain and a longer recovery but can do a better job of lengthening the chin. An onlay implant can lengthen the chin to some degree and is a cheaper and easier surgery with less recovery but will not generally allow for as much lengthening.

I find that more significant lengthening of the chin can be achieved with a sliding genioplasty technique. This involves making a cut in the chin bone itself and advancing it forward and downward to give a longer appearance to the face.

 

In the pursuit of a longer and less round face, changes in the chin can be helpful. Since the chin occupies the lower third of the face and is a projecting structure, it can definitely influence the appearance of the length of the face. However, to do so it mus usually be vertically lengthened not just brought horizontally forward. There are no standard chin implants that are designed to add vertical lengfth to the chin, so either a custom one has to be designed or a vertical lengthening chin osteotomy performed. If one's face is full enough, removal of part of the buccal fat pads with vertical lengthening of the chin can make a face longer and less full looking.