What is facial feminization surgery (FFS)?

Facial Feminization Surgery, better known by its acronym FFS, is a set of surgical procedures that aims to alter the facial features of the patient in the context of a MTF transition.

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These surgeries are a combination of both cosmetic and maxillofacial surgeries and aim to soften the facial features into a more typically feminine appearance. Read below to find out more about the main types of facial feminization surgeries (FFS).

Forehead Reconstruction

One of the most common FFS surgeries is the reconstruction of the forehead. A look is identified as feminine not because of a difference in the eyes, but because of the shape of the bones that surround them. Female foreheads are often smoother and uniform: women have vertical foreheads, while men’s foreheads descend to create a hump above the eyebrows (the brow bone is pronounced). Female eyebrows are also often high and curved, and men tend to have bare temples. For all these reasons, the reconstruction of the forehead can be a key element of facial feminization.

Several options are available to the patient: depending on the thickness of the skull to remove, the forehead may be ground or remodeled. This surgery can even be done at the same time as another FFS surgery or MTF surgery. In any case, it will be your surgeon who can guide you according to your particular case.

Tracheal Shave (Adam’s Apple Reduction)

The reduction of the Adam’s apple is more or less a 1 hour procedure. It consists of filing the cartilage which constitutes the Adam’s Apple. The surgeon must be suitably experienced to not get too close to the larynx and to not alter the patient’s voice. The small scar is hidden under the chin and will be almost invisible.

Rhinoplasty

Rhinoplasty, better known as plastic surgery of the nose, is done under local or general anesthesia. In the context of an MTF surgery, the surgeon removes excess bone and cartilage from the nose through small incisions inside the nostrils. A thinner nose contributes greatly to facial feminization and is one of the most common FFS surgeries.

Jaw Surgery

Several chin and jaw reduction options can be explored and are done through hidden incisions in the mouth. The V-Line procedure consists in shortening and thinning the jaw, it also allows for making the chin into a rounder shape and moving back a chin that is of a squarer shape. Some surgeons use high tech ultrasonic equipment to cut the bone without creating too much bleeding and to protect the nerves.

In conclusion, FFS surgeries include the face and neck, and focus on bone structure and shape of the nose. Other lighter FFS surgeries are available and can be incorporated to complete facial feminization: face or brow lift, blepharoplasty (eyelids surgery), cheek implants, lip lift, cheek fat resection, otoplasty (ears), or treatment with Botox© or Juvederm©. Many of these surgeries can be combined; talk to your surgeon!