New Drug May Get Rid of Double Chins

Getting rid of a double chin might soon be just an injection away.

The FDA advisory committee has recommended approving ATX-101, a new injectible drug aimed at destroying fat cells underneath the chin.

Final approval of the drug by the FDA, which is expected over the next few months, has one New York plastic surgeon cautiously optimistic about its usefulness.

“I’m always interested in evaluating new and innovative plastic surgery enhancements,” said Lyle Leipziger, MD, chief of Plastic Surgery for North Shore University Hospital andLong Island Jewish Medical Center. “But, this may not be suitable for every patient.”

California-based Kythera Biopharmaceuticals created the drug, which uses deoxycholic acid – a naturally occurring acid that aids the body in breaking down fat from food – to target submental fat (aka double chin).

Patients would receive between one to six injections, depending on the amount of fat, spaced out over month-long intervals. During studies on the drug, side effects were found to include temporary bruising, swelling and numbness of the treated area.

According to the company, the drug causes fat cells to rupture, while leaving surrounding tissue unaffected.

“This will probably benefit patients who have more youthful, elastic neck skin,” said Dr. Leipziger. “As you remove the unwanted fat, the neck skin has to retract back to see the difference.”

Those with sagging neck skin would probably not be a good candidate for the drug, he said.

Currently, only surgical options and liposuction are used to combat double chins.

“This could be one more technique in the vast array of procedures we use as plastic surgeons,” said Dr. Leipziger.