A CRITICAL COMPARISON OF OSTEOPLASTIC AND ALLOPLASTIC AUGMENTATION GENIOPLASTY

This retrospective study was undertaken in order to compare the objective and subjective outcomes of the osteoplastic and alloplastic genioplasties. Of the 76 patients that underwent augmentation or advancement genioplasty, 34 were subjects of osteoplastic genioplasty and 42 received implants. Twenty seven of 34 patients who underwent osteotomy and 32 of 42 patients whose chins were augmented with an implant responded to the questionnaires. The results revealed that both groups were highly satisfied, with a slightly higher satisfaction rate for those who underwent osteotomy. The morbidity was the same for both procedures. However, the soft tissue response was more predictable for the osteoplastic genioplasty. The cervicomental angle improved more with the osteoplastic genioplasty. Based on our experience and conclusions from this study, we recommend the osteoplastic genioplasty for every patient. However, for patients in the older age group, particularly those with a small degree of microgenia, alloplastic genioplastic can be justified. © 1990 Springer-Verlag.