Soft tissue changes after advancement genioplasty performed as pedicled or free transplants

The influence of soft tissue attachment in augmentation genioplasty on postoperative soft tissue changes was studied in 25 patients. The soft tissue was completely detached from the advanced genial segment in 14 patients and lingual soft tissue was maintained in 11 patients. The patients were followed for a minimum of 1 year after operation and the soft tissue and bone changes were analysed by measuring linear distances and areas on lateral cephalograms. The result indicated that the soft tissue changes after surgery were significantly different between the two types of graft. In the free grafts there was found to be an increased risk of creating a larger interlabial gap and exposure of the labial surface of mandibular incisors. The higher correlations between hard and soft tissue changes in the pedicled grafts indicated that the predictability is better with this operative technique.