We often see patients in the office who are concerned with the contour (or lack thereof) of their neck. With the ubiquitous cell phone camera constantly snapping us in unsuspecting and unprepared poses, we all see our profile much more often than we ever have in the past. Unfortunately, it is not always as angular and defined as we had hoped or envisioned (mine included!). Facial Liposuction can help.
The angle between the neck and the bottom of the jawbone is referred to as the “cervicomental angle”‘. A larger cervicomental angle is considered less aesthetically pleasing whereas a smaller cervicomental angle (approaching ninety degrees) is considered more aesthetically pleasing. Several factors contribute to the angle including skin, subcutaneous fat (fat below the skin) and the underlying anatomy of the neck.
Nothing much can be done about the underlying anatomy. If you take your finger and run it back underneath the chin, you will eventually meet resistance. This is the hyoid bone and it defines the angle discussed above. Regardless of how tight the skin is and how little fat is present, the cervicomental angle cannot be made any sharper or located any further back than this spot.
As we age, skin on the neck becomes lose and stretched. In a previous BLOG post we discussed the isolated neck lift as an option in a case such as this.
Finally, in younger patients and in patients with good skin tone, excess fat may be present in the neck and under the chin, negatively impacting the cervicomental angle. Fat in this area is stubborn and difficult to lose even in the presence of significant weight loss. In the presence of a well positioned hyoid bone, a liposuction procedure can be perfored to remove this tisse and recontour the neck. This type of surgery is performed using light sedation and the patient will typically return to normal activities within 7 days.