Double Chin Be Gone With Kybella

It turns out that a whole lot of people are hating their double chin. According to a 2015 study by the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery (ASDA), over 67% of us are bothered by “under the chin fullness”. It’s even on par with the fine lines and wrinkles around the eyes in terms of how much it disturbs people. The fact that we are spending more and more time looking down at our phone, tablet and laptop screens, and talking with friends, family and colleagues on Facetime or Skype is definitely making us more aware of our chin fat than ever before. But unless you had the money and time for surgery, there really wasn’t anything that could be done about it. Until now. Kybella is the first minimally invasive FDA approved product to treat submental fat.

by Katherine Stuart
and Robert Whitfield, MD

Kybella Is The First Non-Surgical Option for Chin Fat

Under the chin fat impacts a broad range of patients, including both men and women. Although it can be exacerbated by age, and weight gain, many people’s double chin is actually resistant to diet and exercise alone. Up until just recently, the only option for getting rid of this stubborn pocket of fat was liposuction. Which is extremely effective, but which is also expensive and requires downtime from your daily routine or work that not everyone can take. But now, with the introduction of Kybella, there is a non-surgical option for treating your double chin. Dr. Robert Whitfield of Austin, Texas is finding Kybella to be an “excellent modality for someone who doesn’t have the time or inclination for surgery.”

Kybella Treatments Are Easy

During a Kybella treatment, Dr. Whitfield will make a series of marks on the patient, like a grid, and put small injections of the product into the subcutaneous fatty tissues. Deoxycholic acid, the active ingredient in Kybella, is a naturally occurring molecule in the body that assists in the breakdown and absorption of dietary fat. Once injected, “Kybella destroys the fat cells and they don’t return so the results are long lasting.”

Most patients will need to be treated at least twice, maybe three times, in order to obtain optimum results. The treatments are typically spaced out every two months. The injections, like filler and Botox injections, can be uncomfortable, but are not really painful. Afterwards, patients may experience post op swelling, skin irritation and redness, but this will go away within one to two weeks.

For people who are bothered by their fatty chin, Kybella could be a game changer. It’s performed in the office. It’s quick so a patient can easily schedule it during their lunch break. And it’s minimally invasive so patients can return to work immediately,  making it ideal for most of our busy lives.