FEMINIZAÇÃO OROFACIAL DE MULHERES TRANSGÊNERAS: Como a odontologia pode contribuir para a inclusão social?

Abstract

Gender incongruence is a condition in which an individual experiences significant emotional and psychological distress due to the lack of compatibility between the gender they identify with and their physical characteristics at birth. Brazil has high rates of violence against transgender individuals, justifying the need for transgender women and men to socially pass as cisgender individuals. There are facial anatomical features that differentiate between the two biological sexes, including the supraorbital ridge, eyebrow position, hairline, nose shape, cheek projection, jaw angle, chin projection, smile, and lips. In order to alter these characteristics, both invasive surgical procedures and minimally invasive treatments can be utilized. This work is a literature review that presents orofacial feminization procedures based on the sexual dimorphism of the face. The literature research was conducted on digital platforms including Pubmed, Scielo, Sciencedirect, Researchgate, and Periódicos CAPES, using the keywords "feminization," "minimally invasive," "smile," "transgender," and "sexual dimorphism." 61 articles were found to align with the proposal. Orofacial harmonization has been a dental specialty since 2018 and has been gaining significant relevance within dental practices. Orofacial feminization is a branch of this specialty aimed at serving transgender women, meaning individuals who were assigned male at birth but identify as female. While orofacial feminization is not widely spread among dental professionals, it offers opportunities for dentists to perform both surgical and minimally invasive facial aesthetic procedures on transgender women, improving their quality of life by allowing them to be seen as they identify themselves.