Aging and weight loss can cause the cheeks to lose their plump, youthful appearance, leaving you looking gaunt and tired. Cheek augmentation can restore youthful volume to your face, as well as increase cheekbone projection and improve facial contours and symmetry.
Several options exist for cheek augmentation – with choices between temporary and permanent, and surgical and non-surgical. This variety allows Dr. Weston to customize her patients’ results to ensure a balanced, natural-looking outcome.
Many of Dr. Weston’s patients choose temporary injectable fillers for cheek augmentation, as they provide safe, non-surgical cheek enhancement with very few risks. Results typically fade within a few months to a year, so patients do not have to commit to their new look and have the flexibility to choose whether to continue maintaining it.
Popular temporary injectable fillers include:
Radiesse, a semi-permanent injectable filler that typically lasts for a year or more, is also recommended for cheek augmentation when patients want longer-lasting results than temporary injectable fillers provide but prefer non-surgical enhancement.
For patients who prefer permanent cheek augmentation results without surgery, Sculptra is typically recommended. Sculptra plumps cheeks and stimulates collagen formation over time. It also requires a series of injections over several months, so final results are not immediately evident as they are with other injectable fillers.
For patients who want permanent cheek enhancement with immediate results, surgically placed cheek implants may be the best option. These bio-compatible devices come in different sizes and shapes to accommodate individual facial proportions. They are carefully placed within the cheek tissue to create natural definition and fullness in the midface.
Although patients desire cheek augmentation for a variety of reasons, the most common reasons for this surgery include:
During your consultation, Dr. Weston will discuss your goals with you, review your medical history, and assess your physical and mental health. From the information she collects, she will be able to recommend the best approach to your cheek augmentation.
If you choose to have your cheeks enhanced with injectable fillers, Dr. Weston will numb the injection area with cream or a dental block, then carefully place a series of injections along your cheek from both outside and inside your mouth. This procedure takes just a few minutes to complete and you will be able to see your results immediately following your procedure.
Cheek implant surgery can be performed under local anesthesia with conscious sedation or general anesthesia and typically takes less than an hour to complete. The implants will be placed through a small incision in your mouth or lower eyelid and may need to be fixated with sutures or screws to prevent implant movement or migration.
There is no downtime when injectable fillers are used for cheek augmentation, however swelling and bruising may persist for up to two weeks. For the first few days following injection, apply ice to the injection site to minimize discoloration and swelling.
About one week of downtime is needed after cheek implant surgery, and it may take months for swelling to completely resolve. Once it does, your full results will become evident and should be permanent for most patients. For more information about cheek implant surgery recovery, see our facial implants information.