INTRODUCTION:
The canine fossa is a depression located near the base of the nose, or more specifically, above our canines (fangs). It is caused by a depression at the root of the canine tooth.
This root is clearly genetic, but it's important to determine your canine fossa type if you wish to improve your facial aesthetics.
+ TYPES OF CANINE FOSSA:
~There are two types of canine fossa, with a range between them (meaning there's a middle range and specific genetic cases). Here's a more detailed explanation:
:
× There is the deep canine fossa, which is the least common in both men and women. It's due to skulls with a tendency towards doliocephaly (an elongated skull and narrow laterally). That's why you will NOT NORMALLY see a person with a brachycephalic skull (a skull with a tendency towards width in the middle third) with this morphological trait.
However, I want to emphasize that there can be different genetic combinations between different genotypes, and this can result in a person having a mesocephalic skull (that is, a skull with a balanced FWHR between 1.80-1.90) <PS: FWHR is the ratio that determines the width compared to the height of the face> and still possessing a deep canine fossa.
Example:
And there is also...
• The projected canine fossa, which is the most common in men and women, and can be found anywhere in the world. Unlike the deep canine fossa, this is due to a canine with a less prominent root; it is more commonly seen in skulls with a tendency towards mesocephaly (PS: the most common skull type).
However, I repeat once again, yes, you can see people with a doliocephalic skull who have a projected canine fossa, it's just rarer.
And in brachycephalic (wide) skulls?
Well, the opposite is true. While a deep canine fossa is much more common in doliocephalic skulls, a projecting canine fossa is considerably more common in brachycephalic skulls.
Example:
•HOW DO PHENOTYPES/GENOTYPES AFFECT THIS?
Ignoring genetic variations (i.e., crossbreeding between two ethnicities), YOUR phenotype also influences your canine fossa.
But how?
It's actually quite easy to understand. There are phenotypes of elongated skulls, like those found in almost all of Africa and parts of Arabia, which have a very prominent maxilla as a morphological feature (which in these cases isn't necessarily a good thing, since a very prominent maxilla gives you a horse-like appearance because it will always make your brow ridges look receded). This essentially affects the following:
Logically, if there's a large distance between your ear and the base of your nose, indicating a long maxilla, then there will be a depression in the middle of it because there won't be enough bone between the cheekbone (zygomatic bone) and the canine fossa. This will always give you that deep or "empty" look in your cheeks.
So, in conclusion, which is better?
Neither is "better" because it's just another morphological trait, but when you're modeling, a pronounced canine fossa is undoubtedly much better than a deep one. The pronounced fossa will give you more angularity as well as a fuller appearance.
A deep canine fossa can also look good, but it's more of a niche or high-end aesthetic; it's not as popularly desired as a pronounced canine fossa.
But the simple conclusion is: With a deep canine fossa, you can look average or extremely good, since it all depends on your other features, not just this one, but it certainly has an influence.
And yes, there are obviously some ways to fix this
HERE THEY ARE (Via "Softmaxxing" and Via "Hardmaxxing"
)
• IF YOU WANT a fuller canine Fossa:
A deep canine fossa creates shadows next to the nose, which can make the midface look more hollow or aged.
1. Non-Invasive & Makeup Techniques (Visual/Temporary)
• Strategic Highlighting: Apply a subtle, liquid or cream highlighter directly into the hollow of the fossa (just lateral to the nose). Highlighters bounce light forward, visually pushing a recessed area outward.
Contouring the Periphery: Avoid putting dark contour powder directly inside the fossa, as this deepens the shadow. Instead, keep your contour light and blend it outward toward the cheekbones to create dimension without emphasizing the hollow.
• Light-Reflecting Concealer: Use a shade just slightly lighter than your skin tone (or a color corrector if the shadow has a bluish/purple tone) to fill in the darkest part of the depression.
2. Professional & Aesthetic Approaches
Dermal Fillers (Piriform/Paranasal Area): In professional aesthetics, practitioners inject hyaluronic acid dermal fillers deep onto the bone (supraperiosteally) in the piriform fossa or maxilla region. Restoring volume here physically props up the skin, smooths deep nasolabial folds, and mimics a fuller, more convex maxilla.
Fat Grafting: Autologous fat transfer can provide a permanent soft-tissue volume boost to the midface, softening deep skeletal hollows.
Orthognathic or Paranasal Implants: For individuals with a severe skeletal deficiency (underdeveloped maxilla), custom or pre-formed paranasal/submalar implants can be surgically placed over the bone to permanently alter facial contours.
• IF YOU WANT A DEEP CANINE FOSSA:
️1. Reducing Subcutaneous Midface Volume & Body Fat
A canine fossa is a natural bony depression on the maxilla, but it is often masked by buccal fat pads, malar fat, or general facial adiposity.
Lower Body Fat Percentage: Dropping to a lower, lean body fat percentage is the most direct way to reveal underlying skeletal architecture. As facial fat diminishes, the skin drapes more tightly over the facial bones, causing natural depressions like the canine fossa, submalar triangles, and cheek hollows to naturally cast shadows and become more prominent.
Managing Facial Puffiness: Minimizing water retention and inflammation through diet, hydration, and reducing sodium can also sharpen midface definition, making bony contours stand out more sharply against the surrounding musculature.
Targeting Facial Musculature: The soft tissues overlying the canine fossa include the levator anguli oris and portions of the zygomaticus muscles.
OR IF YOU WANT TO "HARDMAXX":
Buccal Fat Removal (Bichectomy): While buccal fat sits lower and more lateral (closer to the jaw and lower cheek), reducing midface and lower cheek volume drastically changes the overall angularity of the face, drawing more visual contrast to the upper cheekbones and the area near the nose. (Note: Buccal fat removal primarily affects the lower/mid cheek rather than the canine fossa directly, but it heavily contributes to a hollowed, sunken aesthetic).
Surgical Revision / Bone Shaving: In extreme, highly specific aesthetic surgeries, structural adjustments to the maxilla are occasionally discussed in advanced modification communities, though altering the bone of the canine fossa surgically is rarely performed due to the proximity of the infraorbital nerve, teeth roots, and the risk of compromising midface structural support.
THX for watching
The canine fossa is a depression located near the base of the nose, or more specifically, above our canines (fangs). It is caused by a depression at the root of the canine tooth.This root is clearly genetic, but it's important to determine your canine fossa type if you wish to improve your facial aesthetics.
+ TYPES OF CANINE FOSSA:
~There are two types of canine fossa, with a range between them (meaning there's a middle range and specific genetic cases). Here's a more detailed explanation:
:× There is the deep canine fossa, which is the least common in both men and women. It's due to skulls with a tendency towards doliocephaly (an elongated skull and narrow laterally). That's why you will NOT NORMALLY see a person with a brachycephalic skull (a skull with a tendency towards width in the middle third) with this morphological trait.
However, I want to emphasize that there can be different genetic combinations between different genotypes, and this can result in a person having a mesocephalic skull (that is, a skull with a balanced FWHR between 1.80-1.90) <PS: FWHR is the ratio that determines the width compared to the height of the face> and still possessing a deep canine fossa.
Example:
And there is also...
• The projected canine fossa, which is the most common in men and women, and can be found anywhere in the world. Unlike the deep canine fossa, this is due to a canine with a less prominent root; it is more commonly seen in skulls with a tendency towards mesocephaly (PS: the most common skull type).
However, I repeat once again, yes, you can see people with a doliocephalic skull who have a projected canine fossa, it's just rarer.
And in brachycephalic (wide) skulls?
Well, the opposite is true. While a deep canine fossa is much more common in doliocephalic skulls, a projecting canine fossa is considerably more common in brachycephalic skulls.
Example:
•HOW DO PHENOTYPES/GENOTYPES AFFECT THIS?
Ignoring genetic variations (i.e., crossbreeding between two ethnicities), YOUR phenotype also influences your canine fossa.
But how?
It's actually quite easy to understand. There are phenotypes of elongated skulls, like those found in almost all of Africa and parts of Arabia, which have a very prominent maxilla as a morphological feature (which in these cases isn't necessarily a good thing, since a very prominent maxilla gives you a horse-like appearance because it will always make your brow ridges look receded). This essentially affects the following:
Logically, if there's a large distance between your ear and the base of your nose, indicating a long maxilla, then there will be a depression in the middle of it because there won't be enough bone between the cheekbone (zygomatic bone) and the canine fossa. This will always give you that deep or "empty" look in your cheeks.
So, in conclusion, which is better?
Neither is "better" because it's just another morphological trait, but when you're modeling, a pronounced canine fossa is undoubtedly much better than a deep one. The pronounced fossa will give you more angularity as well as a fuller appearance.
A deep canine fossa can also look good, but it's more of a niche or high-end aesthetic; it's not as popularly desired as a pronounced canine fossa.
But the simple conclusion is: With a deep canine fossa, you can look average or extremely good, since it all depends on your other features, not just this one, but it certainly has an influence.
And yes, there are obviously some ways to fix this
HERE THEY ARE (Via "Softmaxxing" and Via "Hardmaxxing"
)• IF YOU WANT a fuller canine Fossa:
A deep canine fossa creates shadows next to the nose, which can make the midface look more hollow or aged.
1. Non-Invasive & Makeup Techniques (Visual/Temporary)
• Strategic Highlighting: Apply a subtle, liquid or cream highlighter directly into the hollow of the fossa (just lateral to the nose). Highlighters bounce light forward, visually pushing a recessed area outward.
Contouring the Periphery: Avoid putting dark contour powder directly inside the fossa, as this deepens the shadow. Instead, keep your contour light and blend it outward toward the cheekbones to create dimension without emphasizing the hollow.
• Light-Reflecting Concealer: Use a shade just slightly lighter than your skin tone (or a color corrector if the shadow has a bluish/purple tone) to fill in the darkest part of the depression.
2. Professional & Aesthetic Approaches
Dermal Fillers (Piriform/Paranasal Area): In professional aesthetics, practitioners inject hyaluronic acid dermal fillers deep onto the bone (supraperiosteally) in the piriform fossa or maxilla region. Restoring volume here physically props up the skin, smooths deep nasolabial folds, and mimics a fuller, more convex maxilla.
Fat Grafting: Autologous fat transfer can provide a permanent soft-tissue volume boost to the midface, softening deep skeletal hollows.
Orthognathic or Paranasal Implants: For individuals with a severe skeletal deficiency (underdeveloped maxilla), custom or pre-formed paranasal/submalar implants can be surgically placed over the bone to permanently alter facial contours.
• IF YOU WANT A DEEP CANINE FOSSA:
️1. Reducing Subcutaneous Midface Volume & Body Fat
A canine fossa is a natural bony depression on the maxilla, but it is often masked by buccal fat pads, malar fat, or general facial adiposity.
Lower Body Fat Percentage: Dropping to a lower, lean body fat percentage is the most direct way to reveal underlying skeletal architecture. As facial fat diminishes, the skin drapes more tightly over the facial bones, causing natural depressions like the canine fossa, submalar triangles, and cheek hollows to naturally cast shadows and become more prominent.
Managing Facial Puffiness: Minimizing water retention and inflammation through diet, hydration, and reducing sodium can also sharpen midface definition, making bony contours stand out more sharply against the surrounding musculature.
Targeting Facial Musculature: The soft tissues overlying the canine fossa include the levator anguli oris and portions of the zygomaticus muscles.
OR IF YOU WANT TO "HARDMAXX":
Buccal Fat Removal (Bichectomy): While buccal fat sits lower and more lateral (closer to the jaw and lower cheek), reducing midface and lower cheek volume drastically changes the overall angularity of the face, drawing more visual contrast to the upper cheekbones and the area near the nose. (Note: Buccal fat removal primarily affects the lower/mid cheek rather than the canine fossa directly, but it heavily contributes to a hollowed, sunken aesthetic).
Surgical Revision / Bone Shaving: In extreme, highly specific aesthetic surgeries, structural adjustments to the maxilla are occasionally discussed in advanced modification communities, though altering the bone of the canine fossa surgically is rarely performed due to the proximity of the infraorbital nerve, teeth roots, and the risk of compromising midface structural support.
THX for watching
