If you would prefer a non-surgical solution to excess chin fat, you’re not alone. Many people are nervous about surgery and with good reason. Any invasive technique has the potential for serious side effects.
One of the most common concerns that both women and men have about their appearance is chin fat, or what doctors call submental fullness. For some of us, it’s caused by weight gain as we age, but for others this ugly deposit of fat under our chin is genetic. Whatever the cause, most of us affected by it wish there was a way to get rid of it, short of becoming a fitness addict and starving ourselves until every last scrap of fat on our body disappears or going under the knife. It turns out there is. It’s a relatively new product called Kybella, and it’s FDA approved!
Kybella first hit the market in 2015 and gave tens of thousands of people a viable alternative to surgery to remove chin fat. As with many effective treatments, the active ingredient in Kybella is something that already exists in your body. Deoxycholic acid is a naturally occurring molecule that aids in the breakdown and absorption of dietary fat, however when injected into chin fat Kybella actually destroys the fat cells. The reduction in fat is permanent, as we are born with all the fat cells we will ever have so our body will not replace them.
While a viable alternative to very invasive surgical procedures, it must be understood that Kybella treatments will cause swelling and may cause bruising, numbness and redness in the treated area. Every patient is different, so how much swelling and/or bruising you will get can’t really be predicted. For some the swelling goes down after only a couple of days. For others it could be as long as two weeks.
It can also take up to 4 weeks to see results and in most cases multiple treatments will be required to achieve your desired profile.
This is why Kybella treatments are an excellent option to be undertaken in winter, as scarves can be worn to hide the swelling and bruising.
An actual Kybella patient before and after 6 treatments. Image courtesy of Allergan.
First, we’ll cover your treatment area with a topical anesthetic. Once that has taken effect you’ll receive multiple injections with a very small needle. How many injections will depend upon how much fat you want removed and your desired final profile, but it could be as many as 30.
Most patients experience a stinging or burning sensation for a few minutes during and after the procedure, however this will pass, usually within 10 minutes. We can apply cold packs to your chin during this time to reduce the sensation.
The treated area will swell afterward and as with all other side effects, the amount of swelling will vary from one patient to another. If you bruise excessively, talk to us as we can treat bruising with laser therapy, greatly increasing the speed with which the bruises will clear up.
Again, this depends upon how much fat you want removed, however most patients opt for 6 treatments spaced one month apart. Six treatments is the maximum recommended by Allergan, the manufacturer of Kybella.
The only people who should not have Kybella treatments are those with an infection or skin condition in the area to be treated. In most cases of course such conditions are temporary so Kybella is available to almost everyone.
Come see us for a free consultation.
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