I am a 24 year old female with a deep mentolabial fold. Am I a good candidate for a chin implant? (photo)

Without an exam your question cannot be answered.  You will need to see an Oral/Maxillofacial surgeon to see if othognathic surgery, genioplasty or using an implant is best for your specific case. It should be noted that patients with severely weak jaws or abnormally functioning jaws may be better treated with other facial surgery (orthognathic surgery), although a chin augmentation may be an option at a later time. These patients should seek the advice of a plastic surgeon to determine which course is right for them. Here is some information to help you make this decision: Candidates for Chin Augmentation - Patients whose chin profiles are weak but have normally functioning jaws are candidates for Chin Augmentation. Many of these candidates have used injectable fillers in the past to strengthen the protrusion of their chins, but are looking for a permanent solution. If you are one of these patients, then you are a likely candidate for chin augmentation

I think a chin implant will produce a nice improvement.Find a board certified plastic surgeon who performs hundreds
of facial procedures and chin implants each year. Then look at the
plastic surgeon's website before and after photo galleries to get a
sense of who can deliver the results. Kenneth Hughes, MD Los Angeles, CA

You may very well be a candidate--good work on knowing about the mentolabial crease!  A small implant would probably not make it much deeper--but you really should be examined in person, and only after the injectable has dissolved....Hope this helps.

I commend you on your awareness of the deepened labio-mental crease, as most patients are unaware of its presence or significance.  The ideal treatment is orthodontics followed by lower jaw advancement, but this is complex and likely unnessary, leaving good compromise options to be considered.  Be very careful with a chin implant and it can indeed lead to a deepened crease and an unnatural appearance.  If one is placed, it should be very small in projection.  While I place chin implants in the vast majority of my patients with small chins, you fit into the category where I would strongly recommend a "lengthening" genioplasty---the chin bone is cut and moved forward as well as downwards a few mm.   This produces a more natural appearing chin while at the same time often lessoning the depth of the labio-mental crease.  I refer you to the following article on the topic published in 2004 titled Evaluation and treatment of vertical microgenia written by myself.Be sure to see a surgeon with understanding of these issues. 

Jenni.rae, Based solely on your photos I believe that a chin implant would be beneficial. See 2-3 facial plastic specialists and review their photos. Don't choose a surgeon until you are comfortable with their photos, training and experience. See my web site for further information. Good luck!

Chin implants are a large part of my practice and in my opinion you are definitely not a candidate for an implant.  It would accentuate your ML fold and make it worse.  You need a sliding genioplasty to lengthen your chin as well as advance it.  Of course no one can make an exact diagnosis without seeing you in person, but I have been faced with this situation many times.Joe Niamtu, III DMDCosmetic Facial SurgeryRichmond, Virginia

A large chin implant can create a deeper labiomental fold. But with a small chin implant this is usually not a concern. Your trial of Radiesse proves that a small chin augmentation does not adversely affect your labiomental fold.

If a reasonable size chin implant is placed your labiomental sulcus should not be objectionable. This is the case sometimes when a chin is augmented with a too large implant. Request videoimaging at your consultation to have a visual sense of what your plastic surgeon is planning and to ensure that you're both on the same page. I hope this information is helpful.Stephen Weber MD, FACSDenver Facial Plastic Surgeon

You appear to be a exceelent candidate for chin augmentation. I would go to a PS in your area and have him take your photos and then alter them digitally to show you how you might look following an augmentation. This is a great tool to allow patients to see their final result without ever stepping into the operating room.

Dr. corbin

Dear Jenni.rae, You are an excellent candidate for chin augmentation. A small chin would help balance your overall facial features and your profile tremendously. This answer is based solely on the one profile photograph provided. With the long term cost of fillers a small implant will help with this permanently. I personally use a digital imaging computer which is very helpful in chin augmentation patients to show them their proposed surgical result. These proposed results are very close as you can see in my digital imaging page on my website listed below. If you have a highly recommended surgeon in your area who uses imaging this may be helpful for you in determining your surgery decision. Best regards, Michael V. Elam, M.D.