Whether for corrective or cosmetic purposes, there are several options available for resizing and reshaping your chin. Chin surgery helps you achieve a balanced appearance, and is often performed in conjunction with other procedures.

.A balanced facial appearance depends partly on the shape and size of your chin in relationship to your nose. Chin surgery can reduce (mentoplasty) or augment (genioplasty) the chin to give your face a more balanced appearance.

A recent study of facial bones by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons demonstrated that individual facial bones shift, reduce, or enlarge with age. Because of the age-related nature of the changes, most chin surgery patients are adults.

Other procedures may be performed with chin surgery. For example, liposuction may be used to treat a double chin or to remove excessive fat in the chin area and neckline.

Your surgeon may suggest chin surgery as a supplement to nose reshaping, because a small chin can make the nose appear larger. Chin surgery may be recommended as part of a combination treatment plan for a facelift patient as well.

For a droopy chin (sometimes call "witch's chin"), your doctor may recommend corrective elevation. Orthognathic chin surgery is another option, which treats birth defects causing dental malocclusion, which inhibits the ability to eat.

Chin surgery is usually performed in an outpatient surgical centre or hospital. The procedure may be performed under local anaesthesia (sedated, numbed, and awake).

For more complicated cases, general anaesthesia may be used (asleep). Patients usually return home within hours of the procedure. Some patients require an overnight stay. Depending upon the extent of the case, time in surgery may be one or more hours.

To decide how to proceed, the surgeon will examine your chin and jaw, and weigh factors that could influence the outcome of surgery, such as your age, skin type, and whether you are psychologically prepared for treatment.

During the mentoplasty procedure, the surgeon makes an incision in one of two possible locations:

• under the lower lip inside the mouth
• under the chin in an inconspicuous location

The surgeon will then use an electrical instrument (a bone burr or a drill) to reduce and reshape the bone to create a more natural appearance. The surgeon will stitch the incision closed and apply tape to the chin area.

Genioplasty can be performed by the use of a chin implant to augment a receding chin, or by the surgical advancement of the bone itself. Once you and your surgeon decide whether to use a silastic chin implant or to advance your own bone, the incision will be chosen.

If you choose a chin implant, the incision is in one of two possible locations:

• under the lower lip inside the mouth
• under the chin in an inconspicuous location

The implant is placed in an appropriately sized pocket. Sizers are used to achieve the best appearance; then the actual implant is carefully placed and the incisions are closed.

If you choose to advance bone in the chin, the surgeon makes an incision under the lower lip inside the mouth using a powered saw with a special blade to separate the edge of the chin bone. The surgeon moves the separated chin-bone tip forward and positions it with wires or special bone plates and screws. Finally, the surgeon stitches the incision closed and applies tape to the chin area.

You may also experience significant swelling or discoloration in the treated area, which will subside over the course of several weeks. The stitches are typically removed within seven days of the procedure.

Follow your doctor's post-operative instruction list to help reduce the risk of complications. There may be some pain, which can be managed with oral medications. The surgeon may have recommendations to reduce swelling, such as elevating your head. Normal activities can be resumed typically within seven days.

Any plastic surgery procedure poses risks. Complications in the mentoplasty or genioplasty procedures do not occur often. Although rare, some patients may develop an infection in the chin or lip area, usually treated with antibiotics. The surgeon may recommend a waiting period to see if the infection resolves itself with antibiotic treatment. In rare instances an infection requires surgical drainage. Scar tissue formation is also a possibility. Over time, portions of the bone may erode; however, this does not typically cause any medical concerns, discomfort, or changes in the appearance of the chin.

In the genioplasty procedure, wires or plates are removed if they cause discomfort. Patients may experience lack of sensitivity in the chin or lip area; however, the numbness is usually temporary. In rare cases, sensitivity loss may be permanent. It is important to note that complications are infrequent and options are available to treat complications.