She'd like beauty to go bone-deep

September 26, 2011 2:10 PM

A friend remembers seeing an article on a UK news site about a doctor who used plastic masks to reshape facial bones in lieu of surgery, but despite much Googling I haven't been able to help find it. (She doesn't remember the name of the doctor or the technique.) Follow up questions: a) Is such a thing viable and b) available in the U.S.?
posted by Soliloquy to health & fitness (4 answers total)

Might it be the Rubicon Moulding Mask?
posted by essexjan at 2:53 PM on September 26, 2011

I wonder how long that mask effect lasts. I note that their marketing material says nothing about that.
posted by dejah420 at 5:11 PM on September 26, 2011

I don't think so, essexjan; she's sure it reshaped the bones, and remembers a picture of a doctor holding a transparent plastic mask with circles cut out for the cheekbones.
posted by Soliloquy at 7:10 PM on September 26, 2011

Adults' bones are pretty hard, and don't tend to remodel unless they're under significant stress ('lifting massive loads' stress, not 'tight fitting mask' stress). Infants' bones on the other hand are relatively malleable and can be reshaped, usually helmets for positional plagiocephaly. I haven't heard of facial reshaping by this method, but it might be possible. Adults, on the other hand - no. You no longer have bendy bones.
posted by Coobeastie at 9:27 AM on September 27, 2011