Facial feminization surgery describes a group of procedures done to give a transitioning patient more feminine-looking facial features. Men tend to have more angular facial features, while women usually have rounder and softer facial features. Whether someone looks masculine or feminine also depends on how their features look together. Consequently, transwomen need to undergo several types of procedures to get the desired look.
What Does Facial Feminization Surgery Involve?
Men tend to have a visible Adam’s apple and a long face with a strong jaw, long nose, and prominent chin. They also tend to have thick eyebrows. Facial feminization surgery would thus include procedures designed to soften a transwoman’s features by altering soft tissues and bones, and they can be done singly or all at once.
Procedures done during surgery can include a tracheal shave, rhinoplasty, brow lift, blepharoplasty, chin softening, lip lift, brow lift, and scalp advancement. The transwoman may also get cheek and lip implants.
The Adam’s apple is actually some of the cartilage on the trachea or voice box. During a tracheal shave, the surgeon carefully removes some of the cartilage to give the patient’s neck a smoother and more feminine appearance.
Scalp advancement is done to give the patient the lower hairline that women typically have. The surgeon will make an incision that extends from one temple to the other and will move the scalp lower. They will then stitch it into place.
Chin softening is a variation of genioplasty or chin augmentation. The surgeon can reduce the width and height of the patient’s chin to make it more tapered and feminine. They will use screws and metal plates to hold the chin in its new position as it heals. The surgeon may also use chin implants to give the patient’s chin the desired shape.
These specific procedures results in a more feminine look.
