Facial architecture.
The bones of the face define its architecture — the projection of the chin, the width of the cheekbones, the balance between them. When facial architecture is well-proportioned, aging tends to be more graceful; when the underlying structure is weak (a recessed chin, flat cheekbones), the effects of aging are more pronounced.
Chin and cheek augmentation addresses the structural layer of the face — enhancing bony projection where it's deficient, restoring balance where it's asymmetric. Two general approaches are used: silicone implants (permanent, precisely-shaped devices placed over the underlying bone) or fat transfer (autologous fat harvested from another area and grafted to the chin or cheek region). Each has different tradeoffs: implants provide durable, precise projection but are a foreign body; fat transfer uses your own tissue but requires overcorrection to account for reabsorption and produces softer, less defined augmentation. The right choice depends on the goal, the patient's anatomy, and preferences about foreign material.
Chin and cheek augmentation is frequently combined with other facial procedures: rhinoplasty (where the chin-nose balance is a critical aesthetic relationship), facelift (where restoring structural support enhances the lift result), or facial fat transfer (where cheek volume is being addressed globally). The consultation is where the right combination and technique are designed for your specific face.
Who this procedure is designed for.
Chin and cheek augmentation addresses the structural layer of the face — projection, definition, and balance.
Recessed or under-projected chin
The most common chin augmentation indication. A weak chin affects facial balance in profile and can make the nose appear larger by contrast — which is why chin augmentation is so often paired with rhinoplasty.
Flat or under-defined cheekbones
Cheek augmentation addresses cheekbones that lack projection, restoring the 'heart-shaped' upper face architecture that ages more gracefully than a flatter midface.
Facial asymmetry
Where one side of the chin or cheek is noticeably different from the other. Implants or fat transfer can be used to correct asymmetry in the same operation.
Aging patients with volume loss
Weight loss with age often includes loss of cheek fat and softening of chin projection. Fat transfer is often the better choice here — adding back what was lost.
Preference discussion: implant vs fat
Implants are durable, precise, and permanent (though removable). Fat transfer uses your own tissue but is less precise and requires overcorrection. This is the central decision in consultation.
Realistic expectations
Chin and cheek augmentation refines and enhances facial structure. It does not change fundamental facial identity, and results should look like a stronger version of you rather than a different person.
Smoking status matters — and approach varies by surgeon
Every surgeon at NCSS strongly recommends smoking cessation for at least 4–6 weeks pre-operatively. Smoking impairs healing at the intraoral or submental incisions and can compromise implant integration. Consultation determines both your health status and which surgeons fit your specific situation.
Every scheduled surgical patient is offered a free Rest-Assure pre-operative consultation with Dr. Rand Scott personally — medical history, medication planning, and discharge coordination before surgery day.
Implant, transfer, or both.
Technique choice is the central conversation for chin and cheek augmentation. Both approaches have refined modern variants.
Chin implant (silicone)
A precisely-shaped silicone implant placed over the front of the chin bone. Access through a small submental (under-chin) incision or intraoral (inside the mouth) incision. Modern implants are designed to integrate against the periosteum for stability.
Cheek implant (silicone)
Precisely-shaped implants placed over the malar (cheekbone) prominence. Access through a small intraoral (inside the mouth) incision. Multiple shapes and sizes selected based on the specific augmentation goal.
Chin fat transfer
Autologous fat harvested from a donor site and placed in the chin region through very small injection points. Requires overcorrection of approximately 30% to account for expected reabsorption.
Cheek fat transfer
Fat placement across multiple cheek regions and multiple tissue layers, using the same microdroplet-multi-layer approach as facial fat transfer. Often part of a broader facial volume restoration plan.
Combined implant and fat
Some patients benefit from implant projection combined with fat transfer for volume — for example, a chin implant with fat transfer to soften the transition to the surrounding tissue.
Combined with other procedures
Chin augmentation with rhinoplasty (the classic facial harmony pair), cheek augmentation with facelift or fat transfer to face, both with blepharoplasty for comprehensive rejuvenation. Physician anesthesia throughout.
Every case at NCSS is under physician anesthesia — no CRNAs — and Dr. Denise Scott (endocrinology) is on call for our surgical patients.
Depends on the technique.
Discharged the day of surgery. Compression tape or garment around the treated area. Mild-to-moderate discomfort with multimodal pain protocol. Head elevated for sleep.
Swelling most noticeable at 48–72 hours. Soft diet for intraoral incisions. Most patients stay home from public settings this week.
Bruising resolves; swelling continues to decrease. Most patients return to work by day 10–14. Chewing normalizes as intraoral incisions heal.
Complete swelling resolution. Final implant appearance becomes fully apparent.
Similar swelling pattern to other facial fat transfer procedures. Most patients stay home from public settings.
Fat integration and reabsorption during this period. Final volume becomes apparent at 3–6 months.
Silicone implants are essentially permanent (though removable if desired). Fat transfer results are permanent for the retained fraction (typically 50%–80% of transferred volume).
Every chin and cheek augmentation patient at NCSS is covered by our Rest-Assure program: physician anesthesia on the day of surgery, one nurse from arrival through discharge, and post-operative direct access to your surgeon — not an answering service.
Six surgeons. Facial structural work.
Chin and cheek augmentation rewards surgeons with structural facial judgment. Meet more than one.
Dr. Toohey
All-UC · Facial ImplantsAll-UC training; three decades of facial and combined-case work.
View surgeon →Dr. Nichter
Craniofacial Training · Structural FaceTriple-boarded with craniofacial fellowship; four decades of facial structural work.
View surgeon →Dr. Horowitz
Craniofacial + Facial RejuvenationEmory + UVA under Milton Edgerton; craniofacial fellowship training.
View surgeon →Dr. Hendricks
Triple-Board · Refined StructureTriple-boarded; chin and cheek augmentation as part of full facial rejuvenation practice.
View surgeon →Dr. Bernett
Female Surgeon · Aesthetic PracticeUC Irvine trained; chin and cheek work as part of facial rejuvenation practice.
View surgeon →Dr. Andre
New Generation · Modern TechniquesCleveland Clinic + UC Davis + Loyola + Pacific Center; structural facial work with modern implant and fat-transfer techniques.
View surgeon →The right starting point is a conversation.
Every chin and cheek augmentation consultation at NCSS begins with time — time to understand your specific concerns, review your anatomy, and determine whether implants, fat transfer, or a combination is the right fit for your face.
Call (949) 644-8182Monday–Thursday, 8am–3pm · Friday by appointment only.
Related procedures.
Rhinoplasty
The chin-nose balance is one of facial harmony's defining aesthetic ratios — chin augmentation and rhinoplasty are often planned together.
Learn more →Fat Transfer to Face
Cheek augmentation via autologous fat, often part of a broader facial volume restoration plan.
Learn more →Facelift
Comprehensive tissue repositioning, commonly enhanced by structural augmentation to support the lift result.
Learn more →