Article by Parvathy Nambidi (The Health Cafe' - September 2011)
Don’t despair if you were born without a dimple- now you can get one!
Preity Zinta, Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone…Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Garner…not to forget Marc Anthony, Ben Affleck, Jim Carrey… and these are just the ultra famous ones. What do these stars have in common you say? Why, dimples of course!
For years, dimples have been seen as a little touch of something special that enhances beauty. Could it be that a little break in the symmetry of a face adds to its beauty, or is it simply that a cute little dip in the cheek or a strong cleft in a masculine chin possesses a power all of its own, making the beholder wish they had one too…?
Whatever the reason may be, dimples are widely considered to add an extra something to an already pretty face. Anatomically speaking, a dimple is an abnormal attachment of the smile muscle (zygomaticus) to the cheek skin, which pulls that part of the cheek when smiling. Since dimples are genetic, most folks who did not descend from families blessed to have a ‘dimple’ gene popping through, have resigned themselves to adoring their favorite dimpled celebrities, with no hope of having one of their own.
But wait! Here’s good news from the world of cosmetic surgery. If a dimple is what you are dying to have, just get to a cosmetic surgeon, and walk out with one on your cheek! The dimple fabrication procedure has recently been making the rounds on beauty forums, consumer sites and on TV shows. Since this is done under local anesthesia as a day care procedure, its demand is steadily increasing. Dr. Hari Menon, Cosmetic Surgeon at Lakeshore Hospital, Cochin says, “Dimple creation surgery is a straight forward procedure performed as a day care cosmetic surgery”. What’s more, there are no visible scars afterwards since only a small incision is made on the inside of the cheek.
How is a dimple surgically created?
The surgeon simply creates a connection between the muscle and the skin in the area selected. If you would like to have a dimple on your cheek, all you need to do is check into the hospital as an outpatient, and have the procedure done in the clinic, under local anesthesia in less than 45 minutes. You will be awake and comfortable during the entire process.During the procedure, a punch biopsy instrument is placed against the inner cheek which cuts through the mucosa, submucosal fat, and cheek muscle. A circular core composed of these tissues is removed, leaving the skin intact, which will create a shallow cylindrical-shaped defect under the skin.
This ‘defect’ is then closed by placing an absorbable suture through the cheek muscle on one side of the hollowed out area, then through the dermis layer of the skin and finally through the cheek muscle on the outer cheek. A surgical knot is tied, which in turn will result in the person having a dimple in the cheek, even without smiling. In a week or two, the suture is absorbed and the skin will flatten out. The internal scarring which takes place will connect the muscle to the skin, creating a dimple when one smiles.
Dr. Menon adds, “It is a relatively safe surgery when performed by an experienced cosmetic surgeon”. The actual procedure takes about 20 minutes and you can go home right away after the procedure. Excessive facial animation or exercise is usually advised to reduce the swelling that may follow the procedure. For a more prominent dimple, a bigger punch biopsy will be used. This procedure can be performed on any kind of cheek, although it is easier to do it on a face that is not too chubby. For several weeks, a visible, static dimple will be seen whether you smile or not. This slowly converts to a dynamic dimple over time which will appear only when one smiles.
Individuals with severe medical problems that require additional treatment and investigation or have bleeding disorders, will not qualify for this procedure. Dr. Hari Menon says that most inquiries into the procedure have come from women. For many, after a lifetime or envying others with dimples, or wanting to look a little like their favorite celebrity – this is finally a chance to make one of their dreams come true.
In India this procedure is available at:
• The Apollo Hospitals
at Bangalore, Chennai,
Hyderabad, Delhi and Goa.
• Fortis Hospital, Delhi.
• Artemis Hospital, Gurgaon.
• Max Devki Devi Heart
and Vascular hospital, Delhi.
• BGS Global Hospital,
Bangalore and Hyderabad.
• Lakeshore Hospital,
Kochi, Kerala.
