Mentoplasty in South Africa

Mentoplasty or chinplasty, and also known as genioplasty, is the surgical procedure by which chin line or chin can be corrected or improved to enhance the overall appeal of a face. The word mentoplasty has its origin from the Latin word “mentum,” which means “chin” and Greek word “plassein” refers to the word “formation.” With the help of a well-defined chin line as per the rest of the face, more masculine or feminine features are enhanced.

Mentoplasty or chin implant surgery can be a solution for quite a number or abnormal conditions. For a more youthful look, many consider facelift as well. Malformation of the chin resulting from developmental abnormalities in the jaw bone can be a reason. At times, any one side of the jaw has been growing, while the other side did not result in the asymmetry of the face. Congenital agenesis is a condition wherein some of the jaw bones are missing.

Chin implants give shape to a chin that has grown out of proportion compared to the rest of the facial features. The size and shape of the chin are different among men and women. As a result, many people choose to have a mentoplasty done along with their gender transition surgeries.

At times mentoplasty is included as part of craniofacial reconstruction following cancer treatment or any other kind of trauma. In an orthognathic surgery, the facial bones are realigned to enable the patient to talk and chew normally. Mentoplasty can also be combined with this.

Mentoplasty and chin implants are mainly used in adults since the jaw bone has already acquired its full size and form and there are no chances of any permanent tooth coming up in the gum. The procedure is mostly performed on people with small chin to increase its size.

There can be two ways of performing a chin augmentation procedure with or without implants. The first is by doing a sliding genioplasty and second is by insertion of an implant in the chin, under the skin. The latter is a shorter process that may take about half an hour to a complete, while the former is likely to take more time ranging from 40 to 90 minutes. However, the time can extend up to 3 hours in total if mentoplasty is combined and performed with an orthognathic surgery.

People suffering from mild to moderate microgenia are usually the best candidates for chin implants. Long time back when mentoplasty was not so common and the technology was not so advanced, cartilage from donors or from other parts of the patient's body was taken to form implants. But since 2003, an inert foreign material called alloplastic implants are being used. The reason behind this was is to reduce the risk of infection.

For the insertion of an implant, the surgeon has to take a call whether he would like to have an incision made inside the mouth (intraoral) or under the chin (submental). In both the cases, a significant amount of tissue is cut. Caution is practiced to avoid any damage to the major nerves in the chin.

• After a pocket has been made inside the connective tissue of the chin, the surgeon will wash the region with an antiseptic to avoid infection.
• Now the inert foreign material or the implant will be inserted into the pocket and position correctly. The incision is now closed and the wound is covered up with sterilized strips.
• In case the chin is extremely small and the deformity is complex to perform an augmentation by using an implant, then a sliding genioplasty has to be performed on the patient.
• With the help of an oscillating saw, the surgeon has to cut the jawbone and a part of the jawbone must be removed. Now the remaining bone segment has to be moved forward.  This section of jawbone is held at a place with the help of screws and metal plates.
• Once the bone segment has been put in place, the incision must be closed and the affected area of the patient is wrapped in a pressure dressing.
• The reduction of an extra large or a protruding is done by either sliding genioplasty or direct reduction.
• In the latter case, an intraoral or a submental incision is made to remove the excess bone.
• The sliding genioplasty procedure is very similar to chin augmentation process, except for the fact that instead of moving the bone segment forward, it has to be moved backward and closed.

Time taken for complete recovery is about two weeks at the most. Most people can resume normal life after 10 to 14 days. Take the following precautions to improve your rate of recovery.

• Liquid or soft food should be taken for the five to seven days after the procedure.
• Use two or three pillows to keep the head raised.
• Wash your mouth twice or thrice a day with warm water and hydrogen peroxide.
• Do not sleep on the face.
• Avoid physical exercise for at least two weeks.