Chin implants growing in popularity

By Dr. Ananya Mandal, MDApr 17 2012

According to the American Society of Plastic Surgery, the number of chin implants has soared 71 percent in the last year alone.

“Chin augmentation has increased approximately 70% in the last year, that's an astonishing number,” says Dr. Darrick Antell, A spokesperson for the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. “We're much more aware of how we look and we're much more critical of ourselves,” he said. He says a strong chin not only improves a patient's self esteem, it may also boost their bottom line. Experts say that may be part of the reason chin implants saw the biggest surge of any type of cosmetic procedure in the last year.

According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, chin implants shot up 66 percent in women and 76 percent in men. That's more than breast implants, Botox and liposuction combined. Statistics show that out of the nearly 21,000 procedures last year, 49 percent were done on women and 51 percent on men. On average, there was a chin implant surgery every 25 minutes in the U.S., and the biggest increase came in people over age 40.

Chin augmentation is an outpatient procedure done under local anesthesia. Most patients return to work after three days and see the full results after three months. The procedure costs between $3,500 and and $7,500.

Plastic surgeon Dr. Carlo Honrado warned, “If not done properly, people can actually develop numbness that persists for a period of time.” Honrado says he often advises patients try less permanent options like fillers so people can see what they might look like if they got an implant.