Excess soft tissues on my chin? How do I fix this? (photo)

Question

I'm 27/f, and at rest my chin looks like it has excess soft tissue. I get the orange peel texture, and when I smile, my chin gets a lot bigger than I'd like. I know that botox can sometimes help the overactive muscles and dimpling of the chin, but would I be better suited for an implant? I would prefer something that I can do once, and not have to worry about again.

Michael P. Morrissette, DDS, FACS · Answer

In the single somewhat profile photo it appears that you have a slightly prominent chin. It is more prominent when the mentalis muscle contracts. It is possible that a more retrusive profile can be obtained with a combination of shaving the bony chin and a "chin tuck" for the soft tissue. A chin implant would give you a more masculine profile. A feminine profile is slightly convex. Skin resurfacing with a CO2 laser would improve the texture of the skin and reduce the orange peel texture.

Barry L. Eppley, MD, DMD · Answer

You are pursing a challenging chin problem. Your excess soft tissue chin concerns only present themselves when you smile. This is known as hyperdynamic chin ptosis. At rest your chin shape is just fine. The problem is that whether it is a submental soft tissue chin excision or even Botox to treat a dynamic problem what happens when the chin is not moving?  Of the two treatment options some slight soft tissue excision would be the most effective if you can tolerate a submental chin scar.

Excess soft tissues on my chin? How do I fix this? (photo)

Answers (2)