A chin implant is a short procedure, about an hour long, that adds forward projection to the chin bone to balance the profile. A discreet chin makes the nose read as larger, the jawline less defined and the neck less drawn; an implant restores that balance. The result depends almost entirely on a prior measurement of your profile and a trial with sizers during surgery. Well sized, it balances a profile without anyone being able to say what has changed.
This guide explains the two possible routes, the materials used and what genuinely separates them, how the size is chosen, and why this step so often accompanies rhinoplasty. It complements our chin implant in Turkey procedure page, which sets out how the operation works, the stay and the aftercare, and it sits within our wider facial surgery in Turkey section. No figures appear here, because the amount depends on the material, the approach and any combined steps, so a single number would mean nothing; for that you can see our pricing in Turkey page or request a free, no-obligation quote built on your own case.
Why the Chin Matters So Much
A profile reads as one continuous line from forehead to neck. The nose and the chin are its two projecting points, and the eye instinctively compares how far each advances. A discreet chin therefore shifts that comparison in favour of the nose, which reads as more prominent than it actually is. Many patients who come about their nose discover at consultation that the projection of their chin explains part of what concerns them.
The Two Possible Routes
The first route places an implant on the chin bone, beneath the tissues, to add projection. It is a short step, adjustable, and reversible, since the implant can be removed or exchanged. The second, called osseous genioplasty, moves the chin itself: the surgeon makes a precise cut in the bone, advances the segment and secures it with small plates. That route also allows height and asymmetry to be corrected.
Comparing the Two Approaches
| Criterion | Implant | Osseous genioplasty |
|---|---|---|
| Principle | Volume added over the bone | The bone itself is moved |
| Correction possible | Forward projection | Advancement, height, asymmetry |
| Scale suited to | Moderate lack of projection | More marked discrepancies |
| Operation length | About an hour | One to two hours |
| Reversibility | Implant removable or exchangeable | Permanent change to bone |
| Recovery | Short | Slightly longer |
The reversibility row interests many patients. An implant can be removed, exchanged for a different size or repositioned, which leaves a margin for adjustment that bone surgery does not offer.
The Two Materials Most Widely Used
Solid silicone is the oldest and most widespread. It is flexible, easy to shape and position, and the body forms a thin fibrous envelope around it that holds it in place. It is readily removed should an adjustment become desirable. Porous polyethylene is the other major option. Its structure has pores of around one hundred and fifty microns allowing tissue to colonize it progressively, which anchors it naturally and gives it considerable positional stability.
Comparing the Two Materials
| Criterion | Solid silicone | Porous polyethylene |
|---|---|---|
| Behaviour in tissue | Fibrous envelope forms around it | Tissue colonizes the pores |
| Positional stability | Good, held by sutures | Very high, biological anchoring |
| Ease of removal | Straightforward | More adherent over time |
| Feel to the touch | Flexible | Firm |
| Shapes available | Button, extended with wings | Button, extended with wings |
| Length of use in practice | Very long | Long and well documented |
Neither material prevails over the other. The choice follows the scale wanted, the thickness of your tissues and the surgeon's habits. What matters more is that he explains why he favours one in your case.
What the Studies Document
A series covering forty-four patients and seventy porous polyethylene facial implants, followed for an average of forty-six months, reports a satisfactory outcome in the great majority and nine implants out of ten with no particular observation. The study also notes that no implant required removal across the whole follow-up period, which reached more than eight years in some patients. The authors conclude that this material gives good long-term results where soft tissue cover is adequate.
The Shapes Available and What They Change
Two families of shape exist. The button shape concentrates on the point of the chin and adds forward projection without altering the jawline; it suits centred corrections. The extended shape continues into lateral wings tapering along the jaw. It provides a continuous transition between chin and mandibular angle, which gives a more natural three-quarter view and suits male profiles particularly well.
The Profile, and Why the Chin Governs the Lower Third
This step only makes sense when you look at the whole face. The face divides classically into three comparable heights: forehead to brows, brows to the base of the nose, and base of the nose to the bottom of the chin. Balance between those three produces a sense of harmony. The chin occupies the lower half of the last third, and both its projection and its height directly influence how that whole reads. That is why a surgeon examines your entire face before discussing your chin.
The Conversation Between Nose and Chin
Seen in profile, the eye instinctively compares how far these two points advance. A prominent nose with a discreet chin sharpens the contrast; the same nose with a well-projected chin reads as considerably more measured, without anything having been done to it. That relationship explains why so many surgeons raise the chin during a rhinoplasty consultation. Addressing both points often gives a better result than a more marked nasal reduction, with the advantage of keeping more structure in the nose.
How the Chin Affects the Neckline
A well-projected chin tightens the skin beneath it and deepens the angle between chin and neck. That angle, which surgeons call the cervicomental angle, reads as a defined, clean neck. It is a benefit many patients discover afterwards: they came about their profile and find the area under the chin also looks better drawn, even though nothing was done there.
Comparing the Interactions of the Profile
| Structure | Effect on perception | What it implies |
|---|---|---|
| Prominent nose | The chin reads as further back | Addressing both balances better |
| Forward lower lip | The chin reads as more discreet | Measurement reference adjusted |
| Neck with little definition | The chin reads as less crisp | An implant alone already improves the angle |
| Wide jaw | A button implant looks narrow | Extended shape with wings preferred |
| Long face | Adding height is less desirable | Projection alone, without lengthening |
The last row explains an important technical nuance. Some implants add height as well as projection, which suits a short face but lengthens an already long one. The shape is therefore chosen as carefully as the size.
The Differences Between Men and Women
A male chin projects slightly beyond the lower lip line and has a squarer shape, with a marked transition toward the jaw. That continuity is what gives the impression of a defined jawline. A female chin meets that line without passing it and keeps a rounder shape. Applying male proportions to a female face masculinizes the lower third, and a surgeon accustomed to both adjusts shape as much as scale.
The Reference You Can Check Yourself
Photograph yourself in strict profile, shoulders perpendicular to the camera, looking straight ahead, camera at the height of your face. A shot taken from above or below completely distorts how projection reads. Then draw a vertical line dropping from the edge of your lower lip and note where the point of your chin sits in relation to it. That simple observation gives you the central parameter of the whole consultation ahead.
What the Step Does Not Change
An implant adds projection to the chin bone. It alters neither the width of your jaw, nor the position of your teeth, nor the volume of fat under the chin, each of which belongs to a separate treatment. That is why a thorough surgeon examines all three before proposing a plan. In some patients, pairing treatment of the submental area transforms the result far more than a larger implant would.
How the Size Is Chosen
Choosing the size is what separates a balanced profile from a result that draws the eye. Surgeons draw an imaginary vertical line dropping from the edge of the lower lip. On a harmonious profile, the point of the chin meets that line in women and passes very slightly beyond it in men. The distance between your current chin and that line gives directly the projection to be added. It is a simple measurement, made on a profile photograph, and it turns the choice of size into a calculation rather than a judgement.
Implants come in several sizes, generally small, medium and large, each corresponding to a different advancement expressed in millimetres. Manufacturers also supply trial sizers. Those sizers let the surgeon test several sizes during the operation before settling on the one giving the intended profile. It is a step few patients know about and it explains the precision of the result obtained.
Comparing the Reference Against Your Profile
| Your situation | What the reference shows | Usual scale |
|---|---|---|
| Chin meeting the line | Profile already balanced | No step needed |
| Chin slightly behind | A gap of a few millimetres | Small implant |
| Chin clearly behind | A more marked gap | Medium or large implant |
| Large gap with height involved | Two dimensions concerned | Osseous genioplasty to consider |
| Visible chin asymmetry | Lateral discrepancy | Genioplasty or custom implant |
The last two rows explain why some surgeons steer toward bone surgery. Where height or symmetry come into play, an implant alone cannot address them, and a practitioner who tells you so is reasoning correctly.
The Operation Itself
The step lends itself well to local anaesthesia with light sedation when performed alone. General anaesthesia becomes standard when it accompanies rhinoplasty or another facial procedure. That flexibility explains why it is most often done as a day case. The choice is discussed at consultation according to the programme and your preference.
There are two approaches. The internal approach goes through an incision inside the lower lip, in the groove in front of the gum; it leaves no visible scar, which is its principal advantage. The external approach uses a small incision under the chin, in a natural crease. It gives more direct sight of implant position and combines easily with submental treatment, the same incision serving both steps.
Comparing the Two Approaches
| Criterion | Internal approach | External approach |
|---|---|---|
| Scar | None, inside the mouth | Under the chin, in a crease |
| Surgeon's view | Good | Direct on positioning |
| Eating in the first days | Soft food, mouthwashes | Normal |
| Pairing with submental work | Less direct | One incision for both |
| Frequent preference | Isolated step | Combined step |
The choice often follows the combined steps. A patient also treating the area under the chin naturally benefits from the external approach, one incision serving both objectives.
The Operation, Minute by Minute
After the anaesthetic, the surgeon creates a precise pocket against the chin bone, gently lifting the periosteum covering it. That pocket must match the shape of the implant exactly to guarantee its stability. He then tries the sizers, observes the profile obtained, settles on the suitable size and positions the final implant. Fixation with screws or sutures secures its position. The whole takes about an hour.
The First Few Days
Swelling of the chin and lower lip occupies the first week, with a sense of tightness and sometimes transient numbness of the lip. That sensation is usual and fades progressively. A support dressing is worn for a few days to hold the tissues while the pocket heals around the implant. It is a modest constraint and it contributes directly to the stability of the final position.
Finding the Right Surgeon
Placing the implant is a well-codified step most facial surgeons command. What varies is the method used to determine the size and the ability to consider bone surgery where it would suit better. A practitioner who measures your profile on a photograph, states a scale in millimetres and uses trial sizers during the operation is working to a method. One who chooses the size by eye is applying a habit.
Two questions tell you most. First: how do you determine the size in my case, and do you use trial sizers? That question immediately separates a measured approach from an approximate one. Then: implant or osseous genioplasty for me, and on what basis? A surgeon who mentions the height of your chin and its symmetry, not only its projection, is examining three dimensions rather than one.
A portfolio should show before and after profiles taken at exactly the same angle, which is rarer than you might expect: a photograph taken slightly off-axis alters the perception of projection and makes any comparison approximate. Look also for three-quarter views, which show the transition between chin and jawline. It is at that angle that the difference between a button implant and an extended one with wings becomes readable, and yet it is the view portfolios present least.
What Each Criterion Tells You
| Criterion | What it indicates | Reliability |
|---|---|---|
| Profile measured on a photograph | A numerical approach | Very high |
| Trial sizers used during surgery | Real adjustment of the result | Very high |
| Ability to offer osseous genioplasty | A view of three dimensions | Very high |
| Material choice explained and justified | Reasoning rather than habit | High |
| Before and after profiles at the same angle | An honest comparison | High |
| Three-quarter views in the portfolio | Transition with the jawline | High |
| Size stated without prior measurement | Judgement rather than method | Low |
Reaching Turkey From Canada
Unlike some other procedures, availability is not the limiting factor here: this step is widely offered across the larger Canadian cities. What varies most is the method used to choose the size, and it is verified with a single question about trial sizers. Toronto Pearson links Istanbul without a stopover; from Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Ottawa, the Prairies and the Atlantic provinces the flight involves a connection, and the short recovery makes the trip manageable. English matters for the oral hygiene instructions of the first days, precise and simple, when the internal approach is used, and for having the material, the approach and the support dressing specified in writing.
| City / region | Airport | Access to Istanbul | Local offer and cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Toronto, GTA, Mississauga | YYZ | Direct links | Widely available; package often up to around 70 percent less |
| Vancouver, Surrey, Victoria | YVR | With connection | Genioplasty on a separate pathway |
| Calgary / Edmonton | YYC / YEG | Via Europe | Available, method to verify |
| Ottawa | YOW | With connection | Many practitioners, method varies |
| Winnipeg, Regina, Saskatoon | YWG | With connection | Travel simple, recovery short |
| Halifax, Moncton, St. John's | YHZ | With connection | Compact trip realistic |
Comparing the Destinations Canadians Consider
A search in English will point you toward Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Colombia, Costa Rica and Thailand. The grid that follows compares working methods, and it serves equally to separate two practitioners in the same city.
| Value criterion | Turkey / Istanbul (Aylan) | Mexico | Dominican Rep. | Colombia / Costa Rica / Thailand |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trial sizers used | Systematic | To verify | To verify | To verify |
| Both routes offered | Yes, implant and genioplasty | Variable | Variable | Variable |
| Pairing with rhinoplasty | Yes, same session | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Direct with the clinic | Yes, no middleman | Often via agency | Often via agency | Often via agency |
| Cost vs private Canadian care | Often up to around 70 percent less | Often lower | Often lower | Often lower |
The second row counts particularly. A practitioner commanding both routes will offer the one suiting your anatomy, whereas one who performs only a single route will adapt your case to what he does. Istanbul brings together teams pairing rhinoplasty and chin implants daily, which gives them a practised reading of the profile as a whole; excellent practitioners also work in Ankara, Izmir and Antalya. The deciding criterion remains the measurement method, wherever the surgeon practises.
Preparing Your Procedure and Organizing Your Stay
Two months ahead comes first contact, sending your photographs and receiving a quote specifying the material and approach envisaged. This is also when to stop smoking, the oral lining healing being sensitive to it when the internal approach is used. If you wear braces or a night guard, mention it at this stage: it prevents nothing but sometimes guides the choice of approach, internal access passing in front of the lower gum. One month ahead comes the preoperative work-up in Canada, lighter when the procedure is done under local anaesthesia; a recent dental check is sometimes requested with the internal approach, to confirm there is no active infection. Two weeks ahead, blood thinners stop on medical advice, including fish oil, turmeric and vitamin E, which limits swelling in the first week.
The Photographs to Send
They govern the remote measurement, which is the central parameter here. Take them in natural light, without makeup, camera exactly at the height of your face.
| View | What it reveals |
|---|---|
| Strict right profile | Chin projection relative to the lip |
| Strict left profile | Symmetry of projection |
| Right and left three-quarter | Transition toward the jawline |
| Front, face relaxed | Chin width, symmetry |
| Profile, lips slightly parted | Chin and lip relationship at rest |
The two profile views are the most important and the most often taken poorly. Shoulders perpendicular to the camera and lens at face height: any tilt alters apparent projection and skews the measurement.
What to Pack, and the Day Before
Bring antiseptic mouthwash if the internal approach is used, straws for the first days, the means to prepare soft meals, and cold packs if your accommodation does not supply them. Button-front tops are more comfortable when a support dressing wraps around the chin. The day before, the surgeon measures your profile, palpates the bony structure of your chin, assesses the thickness of your tissues and confirms both the size aimed for and the material chosen. This is also the moment to ask him for the scale in millimetres; a surgeon working toward a numerical objective will answer without hesitating, and that value gives you a reference for judging the result later.
How Your Stay Unfolds
| Day | What happens |
|---|---|
| Arrival | Airport welcome, transfer, rest |
| Day 1 | Consultation, measurements, size and material confirmed |
| Day 2 | Procedure, back to the hotel the same day |
| Days 3 to 4 | Rest, soft food, cold on the chin |
| Day 5 | Check-up, support dressing removed |
| Days 6 to 7 | Swelling receding, first outings |
| Departure | Flight to Canada possible from this point |
This five to seven night stay is among the shortest available. Paired with rhinoplasty it aligns with that procedure, which is why so many Canadian patients group both steps into one trip.
Instructions for the First Days, and Follow-up
Use mouthwash after every meal if the internal approach was used, keep to soft food for three to five days, apply cold on the chin for the first forty-eight hours, and wear the support dressing as instructed. Avoid exaggerated movements of the lower lip in the first week, along with foods requiring a wide mouth opening. Follow-up then happens from Canada through profile photographs taken under the same conditions, at one and three months. The final shape is judged at three months, swelling occupying the early weeks; reproduce exactly the same shooting conditions as for your preoperative photographs, since on a step measured in millimetres that is the only way to obtain a real comparison rather than an impression.
The Misconceptions About Chin Implants
This step carries several approximations that have circulated for decades. An implant is often said to end up shifting, yet the pocket is shaped exactly to its dimensions and it is fixed with screws or sutures; that double security, combined with the support dressing of the first days, ensures a stable position, and follow-up series over several years report no implant requiring removal. The result is said to always look artificial, but that impression comes from oversized implants placed without prior measurement: chosen from the anatomical reference and tested with sizers, an implant produces a balanced profile that people notice without identifying. Bone surgery is said to be always preferable, whereas each route has its own domain, and a surgeon commanding both guides you by your anatomy. Filler is said to replace an implant, but hyaluronic acid gives only a useful temporary preview before resorbing, while an implant provides stable projection with a firmer feel.
| What you hear | What is actually the case |
|---|---|
| An implant ends up shifting | A fitted pocket and fixation ensure stability |
| The result looks artificial | Prior measurement produces a balanced profile |
| Bone is always better | Two distinct domains, chosen by your anatomy |
| Filler replaces an implant | It gives only a temporary preview |
| It is only for men | Female demand is the majority |
| It shows when you talk | The implant sits against bone, beneath the muscles |
| It needs replacing every ten years | No routine replacement is documented |
Female demand is in fact the majority, for a precise reason: a well-projected chin refines the lower face and defines the neck, two features sought by women as much as by men. What changes is the shape chosen and the scale aimed for. And the result is not immediate: the profile changes as soon as you leave theatre, but swelling rounds the contours for two to three weeks, the shape reads at around six weeks and settles at three months. That gradualness carries a real social advantage, the change settling slowly enough for those around you to notice a more harmonious profile without being able to say what was done.
What Comes From the Procedure and What Comes From You
| What you want | Comes from the procedure | Comes from you |
|---|---|---|
| Chin projection | Yes, precisely | No |
| A crisper neck angle | Largely | Stable weight |
| Transition toward the jaw | Yes, through the shape chosen | No |
| Width of the jaw | No, a separate treatment | No |
| Fat under the chin | No, a distinct step | Weight, possible combined treatment |
| How long the result holds | The step is stable | Stable weight, lifestyle |
The fat row explains why some patients combine two steps. Added projection already tightens the skin under the chin, and treating the fat at the same time gives a noticeably better defined neck than either step alone.
The Vocabulary You Will Hear
Retrogenia describes a chin whose projection sits behind the reference line, the medical term for what everyday language calls a discreet chin. Genioplasty covers any chin surgery; used alone, it most often means osseous genioplasty, where the bone is cut and repositioned. An alloplastic implant is the technical term for an implant made of synthetic material, as opposed to a graft taken from you; silicone and porous polyethylene both fall into that category. The periosteum is the thin membrane covering bone, which the surgeon lifts to create the pocket and which then closes over the implant. Lateral wings are the tapering extensions of an extended implant. The cervicomental angle is the angle formed between the underside of the chin and the line of the neck; added projection makes it crisper.
The Terms That Cause Confusion
| Term | Not to be confused with | The difference |
|---|---|---|
| Chin implant | Osseous genioplasty | Volume added, versus bone moved |
| Solid silicone | Injectable silicone | A removable piece, versus a product |
| Button implant | Extended implant | The point alone, versus transition to the jaw |
| Projection | Chin height | Forward, versus downward |
The second pair deserves clarifying. The silicone used here is a solid preformed piece, entirely different from injectable products, and it is removed in a straightforward procedure should an adjustment become desirable.
The Decision Summary
| The question | The short answer |
|---|---|
| Profile reference | The chin meets the lower lip line |
| Implant | Projection added, reversible |
| Osseous genioplasty | Projection, height and symmetry |
| Common materials | Solid silicone, porous polyethylene |
| Shapes | Button or extended with wings |
| How size is chosen | Profile measurement, then trial sizers |
| Operation length | About an hour |
| Approach | Internal without a scar, or external under the chin |
| Stay in Turkey | Five to seven nights |
| Flight home to Canada | About one week |
| Result settled | Three months |
| Gap vs private Canadian care | Often up to around 70 percent |
The first row alone lets you prepare your consultation. Three checks are worth making before you commit: does the practitioner measure your profile on a photograph and state a scale in millimetres; does he use trial sizers during the operation; and can he offer osseous genioplasty if your case suits it better? A practitioner commanding both routes guides you by your anatomy rather than by what he performs.
In Summary: A Short Procedure That Balances the Profile
A chin implant is a short procedure whose result depends almost entirely on a prior measurement and a trial during surgery. Well sized, it balances a profile without anyone being able to say what has changed, restoring the relationship between the nose, the lips and the neck that governs the lower third of the face. It is adjustable and reversible, most often done as a day case, with a stay of five to seven nights and a result that settles at three months.
To go further into how the operation is performed, the aftercare and the stay, see our chin implant in Turkey procedure page, and explore the wider facial surgery in Turkey section for neighbouring steps such as rhinoplasty. For the cost side, our pricing in Turkey page sets out what shapes the figure. The team at Aylan Clinic accompanies you in English at every stage, from measuring your profile on photographs through to the three-month check, with a scale expressed in millimetres rather than adjectives.