Sometimes excess submental fat beneath the chin, which causes an undesirable double chin appearance, is the result of gaining weight. More often, a double chin is a result of genetics and it doesn't matter how much you exercise or how healthy you eat: your double chin just won't budge!
This is because your double chin may be a hereditary result of a lax platysma muscle, which is located beneath the chin. Combine this genetic issue with a predisposition to gain fat in the chin and neck area, and you've got a stubborn situation.
So what can you do about it?
We met up with Vancouver Facial Plastic Surgeon Dr. Thomas Buonassisi to find out more about options for treating a double chin - that actually work. As can be expected...the best course of action depends totally on each patient. Here are the only effective ways to get rid of a double chin.
BELKYRA™ Injections
BELKYRA™ injections, also called KYBELLA™ in the United States, are injected in a similar way to dermal fillers, except that they melt the under-chin fat that is causing your double chin. Over a series of 2 to 6 visits, patients receive injections into the under part of their chin where the excess submental fat persists to exist.
Containing the identical synthetic of deoxycholic acid, a naturally occurring substance in our bodies, BELKYRA™ injections work by breaking down the fat cell membrane, allowing the contents of the under-chin fat cells to be released and eliminated. BELKYRA™ is an effective treatment with minimal downtime involving swelling, bruising, and slight discomfort. The downside to these injections is that multiple treatments are required (most patients needing closer to 6 than 2 treatments), the cost is high (so high that liposuction might make sense) and patients are left feeling itchy and puffy for about a week after each treatment.
Chin Liposuction
Liposuction under the chin has been a long-standing treatment for double chins, but is only appropriate for some patients. "If performed on a patient with lax skin (skin that has lost its elastic snap)", says Dr. Buonassisi, "patients may experience visible side effects such as irregularities. The right patient for chin liposuction, says Dr. Buonassisi, is "likely under 40 with elastic skin under their chin who also have a tight platysma muscle." If the platysma is sagging, then the patient should consider double chin surgery, explained next.
Double Chin Surgery
Double chin surgery, also called platysmaplasty with fat removal, is an effective way to get rid of your double chin and includes a combination of fat removal and platysma muscle tightening. This ideal treatment results in a desirable neckline for a more youthful, attractive appearance. "This surgery removes extra fat and improves the mento-cervical angle - which is the angle that goes from the chin to the neck. On a patient with a lax muscle, their neck angle on profile view is obtuse. By tightening the muscle, we make it more acute (wide), giving the patient that highly sought after sharp looking neck. And this procedure only requires a tiny incision under the chin that is hard to see once healed."
"When performing this procedure, I need to gain access to the mid line portion of the neck so I can modify that muscle and tighten it. This is done via a tiny incision just under the chin that is nearly imperceptible once healed. While I'm there, if the patient has fat in the chin area, I remove it. If they also have generalized fat in the neck area, I remove that too. If the patient also has a recessive chin, a chin implant is placed." explains Dr. Buonassisi.
Important to note, is that double chin surgery is only appropriate until patients are about age 35. Beyond that, their skin becomes more lax and won't "snap" back onto the tightened muscle. Once a patient is over the rough age of 35, they may wish to wait until they are older and completely correct the issue with lower facelift surgery. In this video. Dr. Buonassisi explains the difference between the various chin surgeries that improve a double chin.
Lower Facelift Surgery
For patients over the age of 35, a lower facelift is the gold standard for improving the contour of the chin and neck. Not only is the double chin removed (via the same platysma tightening discussed earlier), the entire jawline is tightened too.
"Facelifts come in many different kinds, with the surgery customized to each specific patient.", says Dr. Buonassisi. "Patients with early signs of jaw laxity along with a subtle double chin may be candidates for short incision lift, which has shorter recovery than a more extensive long incisions lift, intended for patients who need their neck rejuvenated as well.
If a double chin is something that you complain about often, whether when taking a photo or just living day-to-day, you may be a candidate for BELKYRA injections or a double chin surgery. Book your consultation here, and discover which effective option is best for you.
