[입체성형외과] What Is Masseter Resection? - Explained by a Plastic Surgery Specialist

Hello, I’m Dr. Jo Hyun-woo, a board-certified plastic surgeon at 입체성형외과.

You probably came here while looking into surgery or procedures because of a developed square jaw.

You may be familiar with square jaw reduction surgery or Botox, but many people are not sure what a “masseter resection” is.

Today, I’d like to explain <masseter resection>.

Masseter resection is a surgery that is selectively added when needed during square jaw reduction surgery.

The masseter refers to the chewing muscle of the jaw.

Masseter resection is a procedure in which the middle of this muscle is dissected and the thick inner muscle near the jawbone is removed.

If the masseter is directly removed, the front-view effect is much better, but most clinics do not additionally perform masseter resection.

There are reasons why they do not cut out the enlarged masseter even when they can clearly see it.

The outer side of the masseter is a sensitive area because the facial nerve passes through it.

Masseter resection is a very difficult surgery because it must be performed without affecting this facial nerve.

Therefore, performing masseter resection requires a considerable period of skilled experience,

so ordinary clinics recommend radiofrequency procedures or “cortical osteotomy,” which removes the outer part of the jawbone, instead of masseter resection. Many hospitals have recently been seen promoting “cortical osteotomy.”

However, if the masseter can be properly resected,

there is no need to additionally undergo cortical osteotomy, which requires cutting the bone.

Cortical osteotomy reduces the strength of the jawbone itself, increasing the risk of fracture if there is an external impact.

In addition, the mandibular nerve passes through the inside of the jawbone.

If the nerve becomes exposed due to cortical osteotomy, there is a risk that you may have to live with post-operative bone sensitivity as a permanent side effect.

Radiofrequency procedures also have limitations.

If you look at the content on each website, you will notice that they cannot use the word “permanent” and instead use terms like “semi-permanent” or “long-term.”

The reason is that methods that paralyze or burn the nerves of the muscle can only produce effects for about 6 months to 1 year.

After that period, the effect decreases and recurrence is common.

입체성형외과, the actual removed mandible and masseter

Masseter resection is performed together with mandibular angle surgery, so the masseter is permanently removed and there is no risk of recurrence.

Also, because the masseter undergoes atrophy, even removing a small amount can produce a major effect,

and since the surgery is performed with a wide field of view and directly under visual confirmation, there is less bleeding.

Therefore, if a specialist has the skilled technique gained through many years of experience, I can say that masseter resection is

actually a safe surgery. Performing masseter resection together with square jaw reduction surgery can be a good option that may lead to more effective surgical results.

That’s all from Dr. Jo Hyun-woo, a board-certified plastic surgeon. ^^