CONTOURING THE JAW LINE
Cosmetic Clinic Dubai | 24 August 2019
Perioral lines, loss of volume to the lips, nasolabial folds and marionette lines are all common lower facial concerns that patients present with when seeking aesthetic treatment. In addition, a sagging jawline is a key indicator of facial ageing and often has a significant impact on a patient’s appearance. The combined effects of gravity, progressive bone resorption, decreased tissue elasticity, and redistribution of subcutaneous fullness all contribute to the manifestations of facial ageing;1 however, there are a number of non-surgical options available to help lift and contour the lower face.
Consultation
Every patient benefits from a full face consultation where I look at the structure, the soft tissues and the proportions of their face. It’s interesting for patients to learn how each part of the face relates to the bit beside it, and never is this more true than for the lower face, which shows the effects of everything that happens above it. In my consultations, I will talk through each part of the patient’s face and point out the cause and effect of each aesthetic concern. Doing so, allows patients to understand that lower face ageing is generally a result of ageing of the mid-face and helps patients to recognise that only addressing one concern is not necessarily going to have an overall positive effect. Performing a full face clinical analysis helps to understand where I can get an uptake of extra skin and still keep results looking natural. I use specific measurements tailored to each patient to know where to treat to ensure that the patient looks natural, but also better.
Dermal fillers
Administering dermal filler treatment can offer significant improvement to the contour of the jawline. While hyaluronic acid (HA) can be used successfully, A treatment of choice is RADIESSE (+), a dermal filler composed of small calcium hydroxylapatite (CaHA) microspheres that is suspended in a soft gel matrix. Once injected, it aims to provide immediate volume and correction, as well as stimulate the skin to produce its own natural collagen.
Patients get dynamic results as it can really sharpen the jawline. As it contains CaHA, resorption of the gel occurs over three to six months so you will get increased dermal depth, more collagen and more/better quality elastin. Regardless of the type of filler used, the use of a cannula when treating the jawline to avoid the risk of injecting an artery. The facial artery in that region is protected by the superficial muscular aponeurotic system (SMAS), so it’s not easy to accidently go underneath that fascia with a cannula. By using a cannula I can stay in the plain where there are no major arteries and I would feel it if I moved out of this area. Successful results are achieved by injecting subdermally with lots of little passes. I examine the jawline in three dimensions, aiming to straighten it – particularly with the formation of jowls – sharpen and then contour it. In my experience, treatment results usually last for a year, however, in some cases it can last up to 18 months.