Unlike breast implants, facial implants have seen a decrease in popularity in recent years, with chin implant procedures decreasing by almost half since 2000. However, facial implants are still an important cosmetic solution for many aesthetic defects people perceive in their faces.

Lip Augmentation

Lip augmentation has been a popular area for facial implants. The conventional wisdom was that the implant could provide a permanent solution for flat, thin lips. However, there are a number of postoperative complications seen by patients who receive implant lip augmentation, including:

· Implant extrusion

· Implant displacement

· Serious infection

· Prolonged swelling

These side effects have led to the decline in popularity of implants for this application. In many cases, the preferred method of lip augmentation is via injectable materials, such as hyaluronic acid-derivatives such as Restylane and Juvéderm. The benefits are that the effect can be tweaked to reach maximum customer satisfaction and the lack of any downtime as a result of surgery.

Cheek Augmentation

High cheekbones have long been held to be a sign of nobility, and they provide definition to the face. Cheek augmentation can take a person whose face looks round and doughy and give him or her a strong, expressive physiognomy. Currently, cheek implants are the only good solution for cheek augmentation.

Chin / Jaw Augmentation

A receding chin looks good on neither sex. A receding chin implies weakness in men, and can give an impression of a collapsed jaw as a result of poor dental health. In people with weak chins, a facelift or neck lift can just call attention to the poorly-formed jaw.

There are two important variables for making the chin and jaw look good. The first is the distance from the tip of the jaw to the hypoid bone in the throat. For people with advanced hypoid bones, chin augmentation is one of the few ways to get a good cosmetic result from facial cosmetic surgery.

The second important variable is mandibular definition. Some people have a facial shape that tends to conceal the rear parts of the jawbone. These people can have a good cosmetic result with the use of implants along the jawbone just under the ears.

Facial implants are the only good solution for chin / jaw augmentation.

Although their popularity has seen a slight decline, facial implants remain an important component of any cosmetic surgery practice, and if you are considering plastic surgery, make sure that you ask your prospective plastic surgeon whether he or she has experience working with facial implants.