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Facial features can be enhanced or altered to give you a different appearance. It can be used to make you look younger, give you a stronger facial contour, provide fuller lips, or augment portions of your face such as your cheeks, jaw, or chin. Your facial features can be enhanced to suit your needs, or corrected, through facial implants. Women and men can get facial implants.
About Facial Implants
A facial implant is a solid material that’s formed to enhance your face in a particular way. They are made of biocompatible materials, often silicone or plastic. If you lack self-confidence and don’t like the way your face looks, facial implants can be used to modify your looks and improve your attitude about yourself.
The Benefits
Facial implants can reduce the effects of aging, such as features that make you look tired, or if some of your face appears sunken. This surgery can restore a more youthful appearance and improve your smile. People that have had cancer and had some of their facial bone removed, or that have been in an accident, can have their face restored with the use of facial implants. It can also be used to strengthen a weak jaw or make facial features more pronounced. If your face isn’t symmetrical, implants can be used to create symmetry.
Having facial implants inserted will also give you a more permanent solution than injectable fillers. Fillers need to be repeated about every three or four months, and fat grafting also needs to be repeated, but less often.
The Procedure
Each procedure is a little different, but the results are permanent. While in consultation, the plastic surgeon will scan your face with a digital imaging system. Through the system, you’ll be able to see what improvements facial implants will give you once they are in place. It will enable you to come up with the precise look you want before any surgery takes place.
- Chin Implant:
This procedure may be conducted under local or general anesthesia, possibly twilight anesthesia, depending on what’s to be done. Incisions may be made under the chin, in the mouth, or on the lower lip. The surgeon will make a pocket for the implant through the incision, and the implant is then inserted into the pocket. The incision will be sutured shut when completed and possibly bandaged.
- Lip Implant:
A lip implant can be used to enhance the volume of your lips or to restore it. Aging can make them thinner, but a lip implant can give you fuller and more voluptuous lips. The surgeon will likely use local anesthesia for the procedure and will make incisions in the corners of your mouth. The implants will be inserted through the cuts, which will be invisible. It will only take about 30 minutes for the whole procedure.
- Cheek Implants:
Depending on which procedure the patient desires, there will be little or no visible scarring on the face. This is because the incision is usually made on the inside of the mouth, and the implant is inserted through it. Before placing the implant, the surgeon will make a pocket in the tissue for the implant. If another surgery is to be performed at the same time, such as on the lower eyelid, the surgeon will insert it through that incision.
Recovery
Lip implants will take the shortest amount of time for recovery – usually only requiring two or three days. It will take one or two weeks for scarring to begin to take place, which is needed to ensure the implant stays in place. This means you’ll probably need to avoid putting pressure on your lips during that time, or they may slide out of position. Cheek and chin implants will take longer to heal. People getting cheek surgery will often experience tightness in the cheeks for about a week, but swelling of the cheeks may persist for about six weeks. They can usually continue with their normal activities in about ten days.
Swelling may persist for some time with implants, which will likely prevent you from being able to tell what your final appearance will look like. Although you could return to work sooner, it will take between 6 to 12 weeks for you to see the outcome. Sutures are usually dissolvable.
Other Surgeries
You can also get some other surgeries done at the same time. This saves you from having to have multiple surgeries and more than one period needed for healing. You may also be able to get a facelift, an eyelid lift, a forehead lift (brow lift), or nose surgery.
Candidates for the Surgery
When deciding whether or not you’re a good candidate for facial implants, you’ll need to come into the office for a consultation. This will give you an opportunity to talk to the plastic surgeon about your expectations and learn what’s possible. This will enable the surgeon to develop a plan for it. A complete medical history will need to be provided, along with a list of all medications and supplements you’re currently taking. An exam of your face will be necessary. While there, the surgeon will also notify you of any possible risks.
Candidates need to be in good health, and you may be asked to stop taking some medications before the surgery – including blood thinners. If you smoke, it needs to be stopped before the surgery because it slows healing.
Durability
When a facial implant is put in place, it can be expected to last a lifetime. They can be removed later if you should desire it. The material won’t degrade or be absorbed into the body. If you’re thinking about enhancing your face with a more youthful appearance, facial implants may be just what you need. You can learn more about them or set up a consultation with Dr. Theo Gerstle at Lexington Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery.
