Facial Harmonization: Fillers vs Surgery
*Harmonize: To put in harmony, or make two or more parts of a whole, or two or more things that must concur to the same end, not to disagree or reject each other.
Facial Harmonization in Aesthetic Surgery
Facial harmonization is one of the trends in aesthetic medicine in recent years. But what is it really to harmonize a face? With the popularization and rise of aesthetic medicine, this term has been used to refer to the achievement of facial proportions and correction of aesthetic defects through the use of injected fillers.
The most popular examples of harmonization are rhinomodeling or jaw contouring.
Through the infiltration of fillers (usually reabsorbable) in strategic points it is possible to increase the volume of certain areas, achieving the effect of having straighter lines, hiding defects such as jowls, lack of projection in the chin or absence of jaw angles. In addition, it can be done under topical or local anesthesia, without requiring time off work or social leave.
Weighing the Pros and Cons of Reabsorbable Fillers
It is true that the visual effect achieved is adequate, although at a functional level it does not generate any change. Nor can it claim to rejuvenate, since, whatever they say, they do not have a lifting effect. Moreover, abusing this type of practice can lead to premature aging due to the increase in facial volume. Let us not forget that reabsorbable fillers are never 100% reabsorbed and leave their mark in the layers of the skin.
In addition, we must point out that the economic cost of these products, in the hands of well-trained professionals, is not low. Depending on the volume needed, it may involve a higher cost than surgery in the area.
We only see it as an alternative to surgery for those patients who completely reject the operating room, who know that the effect is temporary and that they will not have any functional change. It could be the perfect one-time treatment for an important social event.
Advocating Surgical Solutions for Volume Defects
That is why we advocate mandibular surgery as the perfect treatment for volume defects in the area.
Depending on the problem, we can choose to perform orthognathic or mandibular recontouring surgery, which aims to mobilize the patient’s own bone, or use custom-made prostheses to correct defects in the sagittal, transverse or vertical plane.
Depending on the objectives of each patient we will choose one type of technique or another:
Orthognathic and Mandibular Recontouring Contrasted
You already know from previous posts what orthognathic surgery and mandibular recontouring surgery consist of.
In contrast to fillings, the use of the patient’s own bone or custom-made implants has a definitive character, they are 100% personalized (previously planned by computer), without depending completely on the subjectivity of the surgeon and are performed by minimally invasive techniques, allowing a quick recovery to the usual professional / social activity.
Even in the case of custom-made implants, without bone cuts, the recovery is practically comparable to that of a dental extraction.
This post may seem biased as surgery is our thing. Honestly, before completely ruling out facial cosmetic surgery, we would recommend going for an assessment with an experienced professional who can advise you based on the goals you have and assess the best option to achieve them.
