Can Cheek Implants Replace a Cheek Lift?

For unique cases where a variety of modalities could be used to treat the condition, I would suggest an in person or virtual consultation to develop a custom and effective treatment plan. It is difficult to precisely define the best option without collecting the same information. I suggest reaching out to an expert for a consultation with surgical and non-surgical methods to get a comprehensive option. Best, Dr. Emer.

A cheek (or "malar") implant does completely different things than a cheek lift. Implants are used to significantly increase the volume and shape of the cheekbones. Patients who are good candidates for cheek implants are usually younger and were born with flat or even pushed-back cheekbones (Sylvester Stallone is a good example.) Their eyes can look bulging as a result because they don't have muchd cheek volume. On the other hand, cheek lifts are used to elevate sagging soft tissues back over normal-sized cheekbones. Since sagging occurs with age, good candidates tend to be in their 50's or older, and need a face/neck lift as well.  Think of both of these surgeries as treating extreme situations of either deficient cheek volume (needing implants), or very loose and sagging tissues (needing a lift). However, surgery is on one extreme end of the spectrum where very few people lie - most people lie somewhere in the gray area of aging or hollow cheeks. Easy, no down-time procedures to give some subtle improvements in volume or shape to the cheeks can often do the trick. In experienced hands (i.e. a board certified plastic surgery or aesthetic dermatologist), injectable fillers like Juvederm, Radiesse, or Sculptra can effectively contour the cheeks and act like a small implant. Regular use can even delay the need for surgery. 

Cheek implants correct flat cheeks:cheek lifts lift sagging skin. If you don't have much sagging with large naso-labial depressions, then you can have cheek implants.