Facial Volume & Contour Loss

A youthful face is characterized by fullness in the mid-face — particularly the cheeks and temples — that creates a gentle, convex contour. This volume comes from three sources: subcutaneous fat pads, the underlying muscle mass, and the bony scaffold of the skull. All three diminish with age. The fat pads in the cheeks shrink and descend, the muscles of the face thin slightly, and the facial bones — particularly around the eye sockets, cheeks, and jaw — gradually resorb. The net effect is a face that appears to 'deflate' and shift downward, with hollows forming where fullness once existed.

Volume loss is most apparent in the mid-face, where the cheeks lose their rounded, lifted quality and begin to look flat or sunken. The temples hollow out, making the skull appear more prominent. Under-eye hollows (tear troughs) deepen, creating dark shadows that make the face look tired regardless of how much sleep one gets. The lips thin and lose their defined borders. As the mid-face deflates, the skin above descends, deepening nasolabial folds and contributing to the formation of jowls along the jawline. The overall impression is of a face that looks drawn, tired, or older than its years.