What Causes Chin Implants to Slip? And How Do They Look over Time?

Question

Do Chin Implants only look good for the first 10 years or so after getting them implanted? If I get an implant at a young age, will it stay in position when I'm in my 40s or 50s? What causes Chin Implants to slip, and is it true that they merge with the bone after a certain period? Apologies for my lack of knowledge! Thank you in advance!

Paul S. Nassif, MD · Answer

When a chin implant is performed properly by a highly skilled surgeon, it should stay in place permanently and not look any different down the road. So why would the implant shift? The main cause of this would be if the chin augmentation is performed improperly. If the implant shifted over time, it would need to either be removed, repositioned, or replaced. Another cause would be excessive trauma to the area. A force would have to be quite large to cause the implant to shift, as the implants are firmly in place after some time has passed following surgery. And the answer is no, they will not merge with bone following surgery. No need to apologize! This is not common knowledge, and it is great that you have reached out to experienced professionals to learn more about the procedure before following through with any surgery. Thank you, and please let me know if you have any further questions, happy to help!

Stephen Weber MD, FACS · Answer

Chin implants don't tend to move without a significant amount of trauma. The implants don't merge with bone either. Rather, there is some data that bone resorption can occur at the interface between the implant and the underlying jaw but this does not typically create any issues. I hope this information is helpful.Stephen Weber MD, FACS

Michael I. Echavez, MD · Answer

Generally, once a chin implant is placed and the initial recovery period has passed, it should stay in place and look the same for years to come. There would have to be some significant trauma to the chin for it to move. There should not be any slippage of the implant over time under normal conditions.

William Portuese, MD · Answer

Chin implants do not slip over time. We have been performing chin implant procedures for over 20 years and have not seen them slip. There is the rare occasion within a week after surgery where the little tail of the implant will fold upon itself and has to be readjusted. After that, the implant will not shift, move, or migrate. When the implants are removed 10 and 20 years later, that there is a very small 1-2 mm of bone resorption, but they do not merge with the bone.

What Causes Chin Implants to Slip? And How Do They Look over Time?

Answers (4)