Bone, Muscle, Soft Tissue · Balance · CityLink Mall
Almost every face differs slightly between its two sides. This page explains how bone, muscle, soft tissue, skin and habit each create a visible difference, how Atelier finds the layer responsible, and when referral is right.
Small differences between the two halves of a face are normal. Asymmetry becomes a medical question when it is marked or distressing, when it has changed, when it followed an injury, dental work or a procedure, or when it comes with pain, numbness, weakness, difficulty chewing or a change in how your teeth meet.
Weight change, ageing and dental work can make an old difference easier to see. Many faces involve more than one layer, each answering to a different tool, and a habit can sit behind them: clenching, grinding or chewing on one side, or always sleeping on the same side.
Types
Dr Sin Yong examines the face before any product or device is discussed, at rest and in movement, from the front and the side. He asks when the difference began, about injury, dental work and earlier treatment, and about jaw pain or headaches.
The clench test helps tell muscle from bone and fat. With fingertips over both jaw angles, you bite down: a width that firms is muscle, bone stays fixed, and fat stays soft. If clenching or grinding is suspected, a dental assessment joins the plan. Photographs are taken with your consent, kept in your medical record and never published.
The Decision
The aim is a face that reads as balanced, not two halves that match exactly. Pushing for an exact match can create a new imbalance, and some difference is expected to remain. No plan can promise exact symmetry.
Your written plan names the layer behind each difference, what can be treated without surgery, what cannot, and whether referral is needed. Treatment is staged, so each step is judged as swelling settles. Not treating is always an option.
When to treat. When the difference comes from soft tissue (masseter bulk, volume or looseness), your bite is stable, your skin is healthy, and a staged plan aiming at balance suits you.
When to wait. During pregnancy and breastfeeding, with an active infection or inflamed acne at the site, and with certain neuromuscular conditions.
When to refer. A marked skeletal difference, a deviated jaw or a bite that does not meet goes for orthodontic or maxillofacial assessment; a deviated or markedly uneven nose, to a plastic surgeon. Progressive asymmetry, or asymmetry after an injury, is assessed medically first.
When it is urgent. Facial drooping or weakness on one side that comes on suddenly, new numbness, slurred speech, or a weak arm or leg needs emergency care: go straight to the nearest hospital emergency department.
At Atelier
Filler does not lift loose tissue, and it cannot straighten a jaw that sits off-centre or correct how the teeth meet.
VF Lift runs on a CLASSYS platform. Dr Sin Yong holds a Key Opinion Leader appointment with CLASSYS.
Safety
Each option has its own risks, explained beforehand. BTX can bring bruising, a headache and a spell of weaker chewing; less often, spread to a neighbouring muscle makes the smile uneven, or an untreated part of the masseter bulges on clenching. Filler can cause swelling and bruising; lumps, unevenness and product movement can occur, and rarely it blocks a blood vessel.
Contact the clinic straight away if skin near a filler site turns white, dusky or mottled, or pain is severe or worsening. These need same-day assessment; do not wait for them to settle. Any change in vision is an emergency: go to the nearest hospital emergency department. See filler warning signs.
Ask to be seen, rather than waiting, for an uneven smile after BTX, a new lump, or swelling, redness or warmth that keeps increasing.
Atelier Aesthetics · Owned by AYA
1 Raffles Link, #B1-28, CityLink Mall, Singapore 039393 · +65 8023 7170
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